I had pretty straight teeth. Appearance wise, I looked fine. I went to an orthodontist because a dentist recommended that I should correct my bite. The orthodontist pulled four teeth bicuspids.

My teeth dished in and since then, my mouth sinks in, and I do not have any lip support. I am looking for an orthodontist, dentist, or anyone to help get my teeth back out to where they used to be.

I have gone to a couple orthodontists, but they do not want to do anything because my bite is on. My point -- my bite never bothered me. However, the dished in, flat appearance of my face does. I did not want to look different.

Any suggestions? I live in Phoenix.

I'm sorry but I don't quite know what you mean by "dished in". Can you explain?

What I mean by dished in is that my teeth lost their angle and got pushed back. In addition, my dental arch became smaller when the gaps left from the extracted teeth were closed. All of these things contribute to the lack of lip support that I now have.

Have you thought about seeing a prosthodontist who can reconstruct the teeth to correct and give your lip support back without disturbing the bite?

Thank you for getting back in touch with me. I haven't seen a prothodontist, but I did go to a cosmetic dentist about four years ago. I told him my concern that I had about my smile, and I specifically asked him if he could make veneers that would help bring my lips back out to how they were. (I am very realistic. I do not want anything more than what I once had.) He replied that he could.

Well, the teeth look great, but the veneers did nothing to help with lip support. The angle of the teeth are still the same, thus my lips still sink in.
When I addressed my concern regarding my lip posture, he suggested lip fillers. Very frustrating. The veneers were very expensive. Now, just curious, what can a prosthodontist do that a cosmetic dentist can't? I am willing to check into it. My problem is not only about appearance. With my teeth pushed in, my lip movement has been affected. It is hard to explain, but I pull on my upper face when I talk sometimes.

Hi Angela,

I don't know if a prosthodontist is the answer but it may be worth a consultation, he might be able to give you some suggestions.

That's a tough one... you may need to wear headgear to bring the teeth forward

Thanks for getting back in touch with me. You are right, it is a tough one. I would love to just move everything back to how it was prior to braces; however, the doctors are afraid if I wear braces again, it would hurt my teeth. My point is if I don't move the teeth, my lips sink in and my lip movement (how my lips move to talk etc.) is uncomfortable. I would take the risk. I have even considered just getting dental implants.

Have you considered discussing your issues with a good plastic surgeon?

Thank you for getting back in touch with me.
Actually, while I think plastic surgery can help for some things, I think one of the flaws of plastic surgery is that it often times treats the symptoms, not the underlying problem. My problem with my lips is lack of teeth support.
When I had more teeth and a broader smile before the dental extractions, I had more lips. Thus, I never had this problem. I am open to plastic surgery suggestions, but I don't think that this is the answer. Lip fillers not only often times look unnatural, but they do not last long term.

Is there a University near you with a dental school? Perhaps, if they offer orthodontics, someone there might be willing to correct things for you.

Have you had the State dental licensing board look into past histories with the orthodontist and the referring dentist? Did the orthodontist not tell you there was a risk of this happening?

Thanks so much for getting back in touch with me.

The individuals that I received treatment from were licensed. With respect to having a flat look after bicuspid extraction, this was not something that I was made aware of at all!

Even now, I will see literature from dentists and orthodontists stating that a flat look after bicuspid extraction is not a risk.

They are wrong. A flat look might not happen for some individuals after extraction; however, it definitely occurs for others.

I have pictures of myself with all of my teeth, and I have pictures of myself with teeth missing. There is definitely a difference.

The problem that I am facing regarding retreatment is that right now, I basically have a good bite. The new orthodontists that I have seen see the problem, but they do not want to put the teeth at risk with retreatment, and they don't want to throw off my bite. Tell you the truth, my case puzzles them.

My point -- the deep bite that I had never caused a problem. My smile looked fine and functionally I felt fine when I had the deep bite. Believe it or not, I got my bite corrected just to avoid problems in the future.


The ideal thing is to have a good smile and a good bite. However, I sacrificed a nice smile with good lip support for a good bite.

I would take the bad bite back in a second, to just have my teeth back out and my teeth that were pulled replaced; however, no one is willing to do it.

My face feels uncomfortable with my teeth in this position. I know this sound drastic, but I have considered getting my teeth pulled and using a picture of myself before the braces as a guide for my implants. (You have to realize, I have tried everything else almost.) Would this be something that could be an option?

Not that I want to do it, but it seems like there might be less limitations on what can be achieved if the dentist or oral surgeon can just start from scratch.

Hi Angela,

I have the Same PROBLEM and I have been googling for information. Did you ever find a solution? I hate the way my teeth dish in and my upper lip looks pinched!! :(

Hmm yeah I think the problem was skeletal.. the mandible (lower jaw) was too far back ad the upper teeth were in a good position... moving the top ones back made the bite good, but the lip look bad... maybe get some veneers that bulk up the front teeth? If might be worth a shot, and the dentist could put a temporary layer of acrylic or resin to show you what it may look like *like a test drive before cutting down the teeth

After decades of trying to find a solution -- if you knew my full story it is almost unbelievable -- I was able to find an orthodontist. His name is Dr. Hang. He has a website and if you read his background, it is very interesting.

He graduated first in his dental school class. After practicing traditional orthodontics, he became dissatisfied with what traditional methods of orthodontic treatment was doing to his patient's faces. Thus, he stopped pulling teeth and changed
How he practiced.

He is actually one of the few orthodontists in the country that open spaces back up where teeth were pulled from braces.

I just started treatment. I am very realistic regarding the outcome. However, after a month, my teeth are already starting
To angle back out.

It was such a relief to find someone after all of these years. When I got braces years ago, my expectations were very reasonable. To be honest, appearance wise, my teeth were not that bad. I still remember people asking me what I got braces for.

When I was done with treatment, even though I didn't look as bad as if I were in a car accident, the fact is, something felt and looked worse than when I began treatment.

After four years, who wants that? I had actually stopped looking to have things corrected for a long time when a doctor
That I saw about the problem was not very understanding and made me feel like I was "imagining things."

My point -- why should I have things feel and look worse than when I started?

To kfung87 -- goodluck

Did you try to get a dentist to show you what your teeth will look like after "bulking" them up with veneers? You could only get maybe 2 mm or so, but it may be worth a shot...

I am happy you have found someone who can help you out Angela! I hope you take before and after photos. How long did he say it would take to get back in to retention?

Hi Angela, How did you treatment w/DR Hang turn out? I have the same problem as you, and I did find him on the web, however, I'm not in California. Are you? If not, did you travel to see him? I'm very interested in your outcome, as for YEARS (20!) I have lived w/regret and I've thought by now I could've done something, so why not get started looking for a solution before I'm too old to even care what I look like!

My teeth looked better before braces, but more importantly so did my FACE.

Do orthos even CONSIDER the outcome of the face? Yeah, maybe they do, but maybe they don't even KNOW what "good looking" is? Maybe they're ugly and weird looking w/no lip support themselves! I was told the same thing that I shouldn't get braces again. "would hurt my teeth"

?

WHAT?

I don't buy that at all. Please = if you're still around, could you come back to answer? THANK YOU

I'm sure there are many well qualified orthodontists in the USA. You just have to interview and ask for references until you find one that you will feel comfortable with. Don't just go by before and after photos in their office, there is the chance that those clients in the photos weren't even seen by that particular orthodontist. You want to be able to talk to some of their satisfied past clients.
You could always call the State Orthodontic Society and get a recommendation from them.

Good luck!

@Angelamiller: Hey I am facing the same problem too but unfortunately located in India with no Dr. Hang here. However I would not mind travelling to California to meet Dr. Hang if it could solve my years long problem. Please let me know that how did your treratment turned out so that I could take my decision.
Thanks . Waiting for your reply...

-Pankaj Jain
-India

@Angela Miller :
Hello Angela I am too having the same problem as yours .i.e. extractions damaging the face, However unfortunately I am located in India where there is no Dr. Hang still I won't mind flying to California if I could get the solution of my life's biggest problem.Please Please spill out How has your treatment with Dr. Hang has turned out. So that I could take my deicison.
Thanks . Waiitng for your reply...

-Pankaj Jain
-India

Hello Angela, I am looking into getting the same treatment that you are receiving/have received from Dr. Hang, and have even flown over for a consult with him. I am still quite a bit hesitant about following through with it (treatment), though. Are you still happy with what he has done? Also, the quote I was given to have the work done was $15,000. If you don't mind my asking, were you charged a similar fee? If so, have you had any success with any dental insurance companies covering any of this? Your insight would be most helpful and appreciated.

Please note the date of the initial post. I doubt the original poster will be responding to your questions. You might want to start a new thread with your questions to this matter.

Orthognatic surgery is probably the best possible solution, in combination with braces.
A segmentation split osteotomy can bring the upper incisors and canines forward. The gap that is created distal to the canines can be closed by an implant on the left and right.

This thread is closed. If you have a question, please ask anew.
Thank you.