BRACE YOURSELF FOR POSSIBILITY OF ORTHODONTICS Dayton Daily News (c) 1996 Dayton Daily News. All rts. reserv. 07035063 BRACE YOURSELF FOR POSSIBILITY OF ORTHODONTICS Dayton Daily News (DA) - THURSDAY, February 4, 1993 By: Tom Beyerlein DAYTON DAILY NEWS Edition: CITY Section: LIFESTYLE/HEALTH & FITNESS Page: 1C Word Count: 496 TEXT: And now a few words about that children's-dentistry subject that strikes fear and loathing into the hearts, minds and pocketbooks of American parents: orthodontia. Of course, it's also a sensitive topic with young people, who worry about spending 30 months with the nickname "Brace Face" or "Metal Mouth." The good news is, braces aren't as ugly or as unpleasant as they were 15 or 20 years ago, said Dr. John Buerschen, an orthodontist who practices at 1001 Shroyer Road in Dayton. In the bad old days, braces were small stainless-steel bands that completely encircled every tooth. They were pounded into place with a mallet, and sometimes caused gum inflammation and tooth decay. Today's braces are smaller and less noticeable, and are glued to the front of the teeth only. The wires that are threaded through the braces and train the teeth to be nice and straight also have been improved, Buerschen said. The new titanium wires are lighter than the old stainless-steel ones, but are extremely resilient - you can tie them in knots, and when they're untied they resume their original shape. Buerschen said orthodontists often like to install braces when a child is 8 or 9, while the face is still growing and developing. The family dentist usually spots problems and refer children to the orthodontist, but "you don't have to be a rocket scientist to tell if your child has an overbite or if they have teeth that stick out like a Halloween pumpkin." It doesn't hurt anything to wait until the child is 8 years old or so to apply braces, Buerschen said, and even adults can have significant improvement with orthodontia, although it's best if people are treated in childhood. Children who visit the orthodontist early can often avoid having teeth extracted to make room for straighter and better-looking teeth, he said. Those kids who get braces when they still have some baby teeth often can avoid getting teeth pulled. Many dental insurance plans pay for about $500 to $1,500 of the bill for orthodontia, Buerschen said. The total cost for an average 30-month treatment runs from about $3,000 to $4,000. The installation of braces usually requires two visits, about a week apart. The first visit lasts about 45 minutes and involves gluing the braces to the teeth and putting separators on the molars in the back. During the second, 90-minute visit, the orthodontist puts the old-style metal bands around a few back teeth and wires the braces together. Fluorescent-colored ties hold the wires onto the braces. Patients need to visit the orthodontist about once a month for monitoring and adjustments to the braces. While braces are pretty damage-resistent, Buerschen tells his patients to avoid chewing on sticky candies like caramels or gummy bears, or biting on hard substances like jawbreakers. In 14 years in practice, Buerschen said, he has never seen damage to the tooth's enamel upon removing the glued-on braces. Copyright (c) 1993, Dayton Newspapers Inc.