How Quickly Does Albendazole Work?

[soapdragon]

Following tooth extraction (2) in November ES finally had his brace fitted today. I was quite shocked as they fitted a bottom one as well which had not been mentioned at all during the initial consultation last May. He has the 'train track' ones fixed to the teeth and I was, again, shocked to get a list of things he can't eat or drink. Apart from the obvious nasties (haribos, gum, toffees, fizzy drinks, sticky food - none of which he has anyway) he is not allowed juice (usually has one glass each morning with breakfast) crusty bread or apples, pears, raw carrot unless cut into small bits! Have also discovered that he will have to wear a retainer after the braces comes off too which we were not told about and will string out the treatment.

 

Initially the orthodontist very clearly said the train tracks would be on for about a year but now he has told me up to two years! ES's teeth are not crooked and only just a little crowded and now I am wishing that we had not bothered with the braces as the teeth had already started to move round on their own. I am feeling anxious about his ability to keep the brace clean enough in spite of buying extra mouthwash, little brushes to clean between the wires etc. I have made him up a little pouch with small mouthwash, interdens brushes and the wax that the ortho gave us to stick on the wires if they rubbed his gums so that he can carry this round with him esp to school.)

 

I hope he has managed lunch at school today as he was struggling to talk properly earlier! Given his and my Asperger's it has been a traumatic morning - I just hope he can cope with it for the required time!

 

Over reactive mother syndrome, I guess!

 

Edited to add; I asked for an appointment after school for his check up in 8 weeks and was told that the NHS contract allows for appointments between 9 and 3 only so they couldn't see him out of school hours unless it was school holidays or major, major emergency; there is an attendance manager at secondary school who gives us all a hard time!

Edited January 29, 2017 by Guest

[Grandmashazzie]

My D D has just finished her braces and has a retainer and a wire on bottom teeth at the back to stop them moving. It took about two years and like you got the list of dos and don'ts which faded from memory and she was able to eat as usual. Odd fizzy drink which she drank through a straw. Orthodontist supplied a little pouch with mini mouthwash bottle which we kept topped up and brush and mini toothpaste. We only had wire break once and got emergency appt as bracket had come off. Our appts were between 10 and 3 so had to be late or get out of school early which was a pain,we were told early and late appts were for kids doing GCSEs ,which was fair enough. It was so worth it, her teeth are beautiful. In a few weeks it will just be normal life. I think my DD can obsess about things like that and in first few weeks we had constant updates,how uncomfortable,a bits sticking into me, I can't eat that but it settled fairly quickly. Good luck. I am now waiting for one of my boys to be seen.

[patsylabrador]

I had them for two years as a teenager and so did MS. You get used to the routines and stuff. It soon just becomes normal and really worthwhile. This is going to sound very mean but I met a lady yesterday about my age who's parents should have made the effort when she was a kid. So well done you and your kid will be very glad you were an attentive mum.

[Geoid]

the NHS contract allows for appointments between 9 and 3 only so they couldn't see him out of school hours unless it was school holidays or major, major emergency; there is an attendance manager at secondary school who gives us all a hard time!

 

When I had braces fitted, I use to see the orthodontist at lunchtime, meaning I very rarely missed lessons.

 

retainer after the braces comes off too which we were not told about and will string out the treatment

Quite normal after having braces fitted, nearly everyone I know had a retainer after braces (including me) and it is not a problem, you get used to braces and retainers quite quickly.

[chickencam]

The results are well worth and like others have said it becomes normal very quickly

[gavclojak]

All sounds perfectly normal practice. Retainers will need to be worn permanently or have fixed retainers fitted as the teeth will move back really quickly.

 

The first few weeks are the hardest and usually 24 hours after the adjustments. You might need to get some dental wax if they rub the gums too.

 

Within a few weeks eating will be a doddle!!

[soapdragon]

My point being really that we were not told about retainers, restricted food, realistic length of time of treatment, bottom brace etc and I feel really mislead. How can you make an informed descision without all the information? ES isn't bothered about his teeth anyway and they really look fine without any intervention...I do wonder how many dentists/orthodontists just go ahead with treatment in order to get the funding.....when I questioned the actual need for treatment this morning I was met with a shrug and when I asked if leaving things would affect his actual health in the future the answer was 'probably not'; how I wish I had just taken him home . I feel we were rushed into the whole thing without any proper preparation and that its maybe all a funding issue for the orthodontist?

[gavclojak]

Re the funding.....all orthodontist have huge waiting lists and believe it or not given the timescale of the appointments and the cost of the laboratory work they do not receive a massive payment per patient. For every one patient they see, they have several waiting in the wings and also several they have refused who haven't met the NHS criteria.

 

All NHS treatment has to be justified, with orthodontics a national scoring system is used. For general treatment for instance an NHS root filling cost the patient £53.90 and for that they get on average two 45 minute appointments, disposable instruments /files that are needed during root fillings at a cost of approx £35.00 then a filling on top of the root filling. I'm not saying dentist/orthodontists are not earning a good Salery but they also have very high overheads.

 

I agree they should have discussed all options with you and I am very surprised you were not given consent forms to sign. The two year times scale is the longest scenario and they usually aire on the side of caution. Maybe write to the practice manager and let them know your concerns, that way they can review their policies and improve their service.

Edited January 6, 2017 by Guest

[Alis girls]

Dont worry - as others have said results are well worth it and my ES 21 and myself wear a retainer at night. You now get orthodontic floss from a bigger Boots which is stiffer than normal and more expensive. But wasnt around when I was a teen but very useful, also so many of them have braces those without look the odd ones out. They lisp for a while but soon adapt. I dont know why you didnt get all the info - bit naughty of them but persivere. YS we thought had escaped (15 ) but he has retained a baby tooth which is lose and the other tooth the size of a bone (ok looked huge on x ray I exagerate ) will have to be pulled down with a chain and braced into place - the alternative is removal of both and a false fang which freaked him out (and me - I have an aversion to false teeth - years spent cleaning them during nurse career ) We are seeing the specialist at Orthdontist hosp soon.

Do you think they didnt tell you because they were worried about making him anxious due to his Asperegers? My son has OCD but so far apart from a quick worry seems to have forgotten about it. I am aware whilst his mates will be losing their braces his will be going on - but adv best to get it done before uni. My only worry is how big this chain will be. I dont want him looking like a gangster with gold teeth

[Alis girls]

Re the funding - I know they have very strict rules on it - my OH saw a foreign patient complaining about not getting it NHS as gap wasnt wide enough in his childs teeth. they wont do on NHS unless absolutely necessary. I think they say 2 years so that if it takes less you will feel a good job done.

You are not being over anxious just a caring mum. We want as mums to shield them from the unpleasant things in life but do them no favours in the long run.

 

I recently syringed the ears of a young woman with Aspergers (19) who hated being touched and loud noise. This procedure is noisey and you have to touch your patient. I showed her the machine and let her hear the noise and said I would have to hold her ear and she consented to this. We succeeded in clearing her ears after several goes - only because the wax was pushed down so far - she tolerated the whole thing well and got over her fear. I am sure he will be fine. Hugs Ali x

[Couperwife]

I don't know much about orthodontic stuff, but I am a teacher, so, with regards to having time off school. You could try to arrange the appointments so that he goes after registration / form time. with ours, if they make morning and afternoon registration then all is fine.

 

sneaky, but hey!!

 

Cathy

x

[soapdragon]

I don't know much about orthodontic stuff, but I am a teacher, so, with regards to having time off school. You could try to arrange the appointments so that he goes after registration / form time. with ours, if they make morning and afternoon registration then all is fine.

 

sneaky, but hey!!

 

Cathy

x

 

Wow - thanks for that! I hadn't thought of it that way!

 

More Calpol this morning as he is clearly in a lot of pain; I don't think I helped by telling him it was a positive thing as it showed that his teeth were starting to move already I have been reading on the interweb (poss a mistake!) about the whole hygiene thing and how the teeth can stain or decay so the 8 week check will be 'interesting'. As his teeth are so painful today he can't even contemplate a brush near them so I am making sure that he swishes with mouthwash and he has agreed to step up the cleaning routine when the pain has gone.

[gavclojak]

What mouthwash are you using? Colgate FluoriGard I hope

[soapdragon]

Um, no.......its Dentyl. Mainly because that's the one from our village chemist. The orthodontist didn't reccomend any one in particular as being better for braces. In fact, they were pretty pants about advice; just tried to flog me a cleaning kit in a big box but I said, no thanks, I'll pop into Boot's down the road!

[gavclojak]

Oh dear...I personally would use Colgate FluoriGard Daily Rinse as is a daily fluoride mouth rinse and its a supplemental topical fluoride to prevent caries.

If your son isn't brushing properly and understandably so at the moment this will help around the brackets where food traps, this mouthwash will lay down extra fluoride.

 

Really good for patients undergoing orthodontics or high sugar diets

Ps I don't work for Colgate :lol:

PPs...the aftercare kit should have been free!!

[soapdragon]

Thanks for the tip - I will try and get some. As for the kit being free....no chance. Even the small interden type brushes were £4 per pack of 6 and then they suggested a £10 gum shield (he'll get another mouldable in hot water one from school as they are only £2!)

[soapdragon]

 

I recently syringed the ears of a young woman with Aspergers (19) who hated being touched and loud noise. This procedure is noisey and you have to touch your patient. I showed her the machine and let her hear the noise and said I would have to hold her ear and she consented to this. We succeeded in clearing her ears after several goes - only because the wax was pushed down so far - she tolerated the whole thing well and got over her fear. I am sure he will be fine. Hugs Ali x

 

What a lovely nurse you are! Please come and work in our practice; our nurse has the interpersonal skills of Atilla the Hun and the bedside manner of Sir Lancelot Spratt (showing my age there )

[Grandmashazzie]

Our aftercare kit was free too.

[gavclojak]

Our aftercare kit was free too.

That's good practice to put together the kits for free. The interdental brushes are called tepe and are usually 3.25 in boots but sensodyn do some really good ones that are rubber and more forgiving than the metal tepe.

[Alis girls]

Thanks Soapdragon- despite being a nurse since time began I am still learning. I have learnt when to say" no not doing that " and recently refused to syringe the ears of a dementia patient who kept saying "it hurts" I didnt know if it was hurting and told the GP's they could do it if they wanted it done. I dont make myself popular by being gobby but thats the way it goes. I was proud of my efforts with this young Aspergers patient. One of out elderly patients was telling me that a community nurse who visited her wanted to know about the bedside manner of one of our male GP's who is like Basil Faulty on a bad day. She said "dunno never slept with him" we had a giggle over that.

Orthodontics is big bucks - some are better than others - are you paying for treatment or getting it on NHS?

[Alis girls]

Oh just remembered you can get some wax stuff to put over any of the bits which chaff your mouth. ES had some I think from orthodontist but get on amazon too. Chaffing can cause ulcers in the mouth. Good luck x

[soapdragon]

Four tiny wax strips were all that we got from the practice in terms of aftercare! That's the NHS for you....even the receptionist was nicer to the private patients than the NHS ones! Its in Marlow close to Henley on Thames both of which are very wealthy, s"Ooops, word censored!"y areas so we are rather looked down on as poor, deprived people who are getting 'free' treatment

[Grandmashazzie]

Am sure if rich can get it free,they will. I often think that's how they've got it,they don't waste it. My ED had a friend who's parents were VERY wealthy and they quibbled over everything. I am talking 25 years ago when it wasn't done. When they were out shopping,clothes,shoes etc she always asked for a discount and generally got it.

[gavclojak]

Four tiny wax strips were all that we got from the practice in terms of aftercare! That's the NHS for you....even the receptionist was nicer to the private patients than the NHS ones! Its in Marlow close to Henley on Thames both of which are very wealthy, s"Ooops, word censored!"y areas so we are rather looked down on as poor, deprived people who are getting 'free' treatment

 

I often give away wax strips to patients who pop in for advice even if they are not patients of our practice and I have also given away several orthodontic storage boxes free!

 

I would literally die if I thought that's how we came across in our NHS/Private practice. I have to say occasionally it's the patient issue rather than ours, they assume our private patients are treated better than our NHS patients and become very defensive but then I kill them with kindness but I can assure you nothing could be further from the truth.

 

Obviously I can't speak for any other practices but all our patients are treated exactly the same and as the manager I wouldn't have it any other way!

[soapdragon]

Sadly I think its the area....the only other alternative was right in the centre of Oxford which is an absolute pig to get to and parking.....whoa, don't even go there (literally!). At least with Marlow I can belt down the M40 and there is a big car park quite near.

 

The Marlow practice did turn on the sales pitch with the cleaning kit, brushes and mouth guard.......I don't think it would have been too much to ask to be sent away with a couple of complementary brushes and a small bottle of mouthwash still, my Boot's Advantage card balance is now looking healthier.

 

Poor ES is still in quite a lot of pain and very grumpy; he says he can't physically close his mouth but when he mentioned this to the Orthodontist the chap didn't seem at all worried by it or do anything about it I've been unable to get any of the recommended mouthwash but will try Asda tomorrow as have to take YS to a party near one.