The Pendulum Swings....

Well not really in this case...

We've been waiting since September for Sophia to have enough of a tooth to attach a bracket to for her first round of braces.

There are two teeth that fell out a couple years ago and there's only enough room for one tooth to come in. So, the other teeth are stuck and both teeth are fighting for space...so essentially neither one is coming down into the spot very well. Every 8 weeks we go back for the orthodontist to look at the teeth and within 5 minutes he sends us home to waiting another 8 weeks.

We spent a year correcting her jaw and pallet and now we're waiting. We know that this will be the first round of braces for her. These braces are not cosmetic. These braces are necessary to pull the teeth back to create space to allow these teeth to come in. Otherwise, we have to go in and surgically extract them all together and we don't want to do that.

So, today the doctor did some xrays and is thinking of installing something other than braces (mainly because he hates installing two sets of braces on any child) and we still don't have enough tooth coming through.

He wants to install the Pendulum Appliance. It basically goes on the roof of her mouth and pulls the molars back from the inside.

Here's an excerpt about it:

A pendulum appliance is used to achieve optimum molar relationship with little or no effort required by the patient. With proper occlusion of the molars, we may have a more functional and effective bite. The pendulum appliance is also used to make space for incoming teeth. In many cases, a patient does not have enough room for all of their teeth, so space must be made. This appliance is a very active appliance and must be checked by Dr. every 2-3 weeks. Movement occurs quickly so be sure to keep your appointments.The appliance is a piece of acrylic that is shaped to the roof of your mouth. It is connected by wires that attach to small metal bands that fit around your teeth on both sides of your mouth. You will want to check your appliance every few days to make sure nothing is broken. If you should notice anything loose, let our office know right away.How To Take Care of Your New Appliance You will brush your teeth the way you normally brush. However, make sure you brush the roof of your mouth thoroughly. In addition, a water pik can be helpful. If swelling occurs, use a warm salt-water rinse (2 teaspoon of salt in 8 oz. of warm water four times per day) to reduce the swelling. You need to avoid eating hard and sticky, soft and chewy candy and foods. You will receive a list of foods not to eat. It is called our “Food for Thought” list. DO NOT eat anything on this list as it may break your appliance.

It's very similar to the pallet expander she already wore. We go 4 times over the next 4 weeks for the molds, fittings and spacers. Then on March 1st she gets "installed".