Pulling Teeth
By Dr. Linda Niessen -- Baylor College of Dentistry STORY: PULLING TEETH SCRIPT #502 SHOOT: 3/4/03 AIRDATE: Monday, March 31, 2003 DHC Master #17 Timecode: 34:07
Monday, March 31, 2003
Just 7 years old, Brett Bullington makes his monthly visit to the orthodontist. The diagnosis? Not enough room in his mouth for all his teeth.
So orthodontist Dr. Mark Ozier places a device that will expand Brett’s palate and eliminate crowding. Brett’s friends in the second grade were surprised when he got his braces. “When I first got them, everybody was like you got braces?” Brett said.
We now know that crowding problems can be corrected without pulling teeth in almost all young children and in some adults.
“My philosophy is to not pull teeth because you have a broader, wider smile. If it’s just a dental or tooth problem, then it’s crooked, crowded teeth and we go in with expanders, make room, use the braces to straighten the teeth and put them in place.” Dr. Mark Ozier said.
Fifteen years ago, Misty Absher had four teeth pulled to eliminate a crowding problem. “Now my bite is off. And so I’m constantly ginding on my back teeth.” Absher said. “I kind of have an open bite they tell me. I wouldn’t have them extracted now, but I understand back then, that was the standard of care. Now, if I had an option I wouldn’t want to lose any of my teeth.”
“We don’t want to pull four perfectly healthy teeth and compromise a crowded situation at age 14 or 15,” Ozier said.
Brett’s mother, Amy Bullington, endorses the new approach of expanding the palate rather than pulling teeth. “Start early and it’s a lot easier. There’s less pain. And hopefully we’re going to prevent a lot of problems in the future,” Bullington said.
The American Association of Orthodontists recommends a child see an orthodontist by age 7. That way, mother and mother nature can work together to make room for all the natural teeth.
Dr. Linda Niessen, clinical professor in the Department of Restorative Sciences and the Office of Communications and Development at Baylor College of Dentistry, hosts Dental Health Check, the only weekly dental feature shot on location in the nation.
