Dr. Marianne Demirdji // SDOrthodontics

Don’t want to stain your trays or your clear color ties?? AVOID THE FOLLOWING Black coffee, lattes, matcha and turmeric lattes These drinks all have strongly colored pigments that can easily stain your Invisalign trays or your clear braces colors. The plastic picks up the pigment and because the colors are so vivid they STAIN. If you really need your fix of these yummy drinks, avoid lingering over the drinks, sip through a straw, or rinse... with copious amounts of water after you’re done! Wine and tea So delicious, but also big culprits to not only stain your trays and ties, but also your teeth! Black tea is notorious for leaving stains on your teeth so be sure to get frequent cleanings from your dentist so these deposits don’t build up. Curries So incredibly good, but also very notorious for changing your tray and ties to yellow, orange, or green! Keep in mind especially if you have an event coming up that you don’t want to risk any staining. Always keep in mind, these are temporary stains and once you change your trays (usually weekly or as directed by your orthodontist) or you change your clear ties (about every month or so) these stains go away! So keep it in mind, but life is short, so enjoy that matcha latte Share with your friends in clear aligner treatment or in braces so they know

Making spirits bright at SDOrthodontics

I’m self conscious about my gap You are not alone!! I hear this so many times from patients just looking to CLOSE. THAT. GAP. A diastema refers traditionally to the space between the upper front two teeth. I’ve had patients ask me to not fully close their diastema for multiple reasons - some have it run in their family, some think it’s cute , and some just identify with it! Whatever the reason, I can close it partially, or completely. ... Sometimes we see this gap because there is a frenum that attaches too low between the teeth and is essentially a physical barrier between the teeth that likely needs to be removed to achieve full and reliable closure. Other times I’ve seen a diastema (and even more spaces) due to a tongue thrust or thumb sucking habit that causes the teeth to spread apart. I loved this outcome because the gap cinched right up, and the final result is just lovely

My friend said I had an overbite! I have a bone to pick with this friend everyone has Let’s clear the air - there is nothing wrong with an overbite, in fact, you need some overbite so you can bite into things. In an ideal situation, our front teeth should overlap by 2-3 millimeters over our lower teeth. The next thing I see is misinformation about an overbite versus an overjet. I honestly just call any horizontal or vertical discrepancy an overbite too because I’m ...just confusing my patients However, to set the record straight here, the arrow above is pointing to an overjet, the horizontal difference between upper and lower teeth; whereas an overbite is the vertical overlap of upper and lower teeth. Having too much or too little overbite or overjet is something to get evaluated to prevent future oral health issues and give balance to our faces. Usually an extreme discrepancy in these measurements can contribute to an unbalanced facial profile that can be addressed if the patient wishes.

I get patients confused sometimes about what the colors to their braces are, so I wanted to explain a bit! All braces come in standard colors based off what their made of: the main two are metal and clear. To hold the wire to the braces, we use little ties that are the colors for your braces! If it’s simply engaging the wire to your braces, we use single ties! You can choose as many as you like, and in as many patterns as you like too! @thebracesguy has ALL ...THE COMBOS. For adults who are anxious about color show, silver blends best with the metal, and clear blends with clear brackets (but can stain pretty easily)! If you have spaces between your teeth, I like to use power chains to close up the spaces! You can see in the picture the chain is a connected unit of ties. This can restrict the number of colors you can get, but I’ll always work with you to make your creative braces colors come true The chicest thing I’ve seen is matching your nail color to your braces color #nextlevel.

Do they?!?! I know it’s scary getting something new done, but let me explain what hurts and doesn’t with braces! 1 Putting the braces on - doesn’t hurt AT ALL Honestly, it’s boring more than anything. I put on a cheek retractor like from the @wymgame, and then get to work putting the braces on. 2 Afterwards, your teeth will feel nice and tight but not sore. This is the time to eat something and take some regular pain medication. Within a few hours, you may e...xperience soreness around your teeth. This is when , , and mashed are your friend They’ll feel sore after your adjustments but as you get longer into your treatment- the adjustments will feel less sore, and more often than not - don’t hurt at all. it’s a small price to pay for a beautiful smile for life!

The worst feeling ever! How can we fix it? We give you a little welcome packet with a toothbrush , toothpaste, floss, floss threaders, and a little box filled with a few strips of soft orthodontic wax. It looks like those little orange boxes in the picture. How do you use it? 1Pinch off a little piece of the wax with your fingernail... Roll it into a little ball 2Look at the area in your mouth where the braces are bothering you - try to dry the area with some tissue. 3Press the wax gently on the sharp wire, the poky hook, or wherever you feel discomfort. Then relax! Call or text to let us know and we will take care of you! Always check before leaving your appointment that there is nothing sharp or poky - and even when you check; sometimes the wire slides around or comes out the back (especially in the beginning). I promise it gets better!

Reflecting on a happy, busy week of seeing patients The best part of the week was seeing this pre-teen girl OVER THE LITERAL MOON about getting her braces on. I get so amazed when I see young patients understand the value of the outcome of orthodontic treatment. I know, I know - they’re excited about the colors and their friends have it. BUT - I know also within them is the understanding of what a beautiful, healthy smile can give you in life. The confidence of a beautif...ul smile is the power it gives when you walk into a room knowing YOU OWN IT Your smile is the key to breaking barriers, building relationships, and getting to where you want in life. I know it because I see it every day, and I live it every day. That young girl knows it, and I hope you do too. Never hesitate to invest in yourself because you’ll never know where it can take you in life

Did you know? There’s no difference in outcome between clear and metal brackets! No matter what, I’ll be getting you to your ideal finish line. But I’ll just say, I love how invisible these clear braces look

Just a couple of helpful reminders from Dr. Marianne! Book your new smile consultation now on our website 818-242-3377... www.drmarianneorthosdo.com live bookings Located at 320 Arden Ave Suite 200 Glendale CA 91203

What Should My Child Avoid Eating with Braces? I get this question, without fail, every time I put braces on a patient. We have a list that we always give to patients and we verbally tell our patients what to avoid. HOWEVER ... Reading a boring list never really sticks So instead, just take a look at this picture, and you’ll get the idea! WHAT TO AVOID HARD, CHEWY, STICKY, CRUNCHY, SUGARY, AND ACIDIC FOODS FOR EXAMPLE: gum, nuts, ice, caramel, chips, toasted bagels, crunchy bread, pizza crust, carrots, apples, soda, sugary juice, popcorn All these foods are prone to breaking the braces which can SLOW DOWN your treatment, permanently damage your teeth, and even be costly to repair . Soda with braces is a huge no-no; and so are super sugary foods because these can cause cavities and ugly white spots on your teeth. You can cut up big pieces of food like bread or apples into small bite-sized pieces to avoid breaking the braces. Any questions? What did you miss eating the most with braces?

My soul was lifted walking in here today! Is this the same office!? It’s so modern and minimalist! How did you guys design this?? I was pretty overwhelmed with the reactions from our patients with our new office waiting room. The support from all of you on IG has been incredible too Excited for all the new memories and patients I’ll be lucky to serve in this office

Name a better part of the braces experience ...I’ll wait. Okay, maybe taking them off is the best part. But the colors are RIGHT UP THERE. Getting holiday colors , matching your prom dress, going for Lakers colors...it’s so fun and personalized ... These are called O-rings, A-lastiks, elastic ligatures, but to everyone - it’s just...the colors. They hold the wire to the braces that I put on your teeth. It’s what makes metal or clear braces pop with color It’s been great seeing people who usually get blah colors switch it up to something bright because they’re hidden under their mask it’s what inspired me to do my first #igreel 2 posts back! I’ve been seeing people more okay with braces now that we are wearing masks and staying indoors anyways! Just you wait Summer 2021, we’re coming for you ...please, please be better than Summer 2020

Why do I need jaw surgery?!? Sometimes there’s no way around it, and I have to tell patients in my professional opinion - their best treatment option involves jaw surgery. Usually the questions that come after include WAIT, my teeth are that bad?!? or Are they gonna break my jaw?! ... I want to clear the air here and say it rarely has to do with your teeth being bad! The purpose of jaw surgery is to fix the jaws. Either the front to back position of the upper and/or lower jaw, a width discrepancy of usually the upper jaw, or an incorrect jaw growth pattern. You can see in the infographic the most common different types and reasons for surgery. There are many specialized surgeries that oral surgeons do as well. Another question I get often: do I get the surgery first and then braces? How does it work? Quick answer: we usually start treatment first braces or even Invisalign nowadays, you have treatment for usually about a year to year and a half. Get the surgery with braces on. Then we detail and wrap you up 6 months to hopefully at most a year after surgery to reveal your beautiful outcome I’ve seen cases of doing surgery before braces and that is up to your surgeon and orthodontist to decide what is the best treatment for you I love what jaw surgery can do for patients because orthodontics can only fix teeth jaw surgery fixes the positions of the jaws when the bite is too severely off due to an improper position of the jaws. The results are often amazing, and life changing! Some amazing surgeons I know - my classmate from dental school @soel_surgeon , and a discovery from IG @raniahabib.md.dds and a local office doing surgery @oralmaxsurgery. Check them out if you haven’t already!

So doc, how long will I need these for? I totally get it, we’ve got things to get to in our lives and no one wants to feel like they are trapped in orthodontic treatment for years! So how do we as orthodontists pin down exactly how long your treatment will be? First and foremost, every orthodontist will have a different opinion based off of their experience on treating cases similar to yours. Additionally, other factors include case complexity, appliance types, and your... specific biology. For example, a straight-forward minor crowding case can possibly done in as easily as 6 months. An extraction case could take 18-24 months. And as a higher end, a complex surgical case could take up to 36 months We usually partition cases to be 6-12 months, 12-18 months, 18-24 months, and 24 months+. Remember though, every orthodontist is different and will give you potentially different time estimates. There’s no denying - orthodontic treatment takes TIME. It takes time to get your perfect smile, and your perfect bite! But some things to keep in mind: 1My goal is to get you done with treatment as quick and as safe as possible. If I estimated 18 months for your treatment and we are done in 12 months - I’m not going to keep you in treatment longer than necessary! 2Try to not come into your exam with expectations - teeth can look straight; but your bite can be completely off without you even knowing! This can make for a complex treatment when you were hoping it would be just a quick treatment. 3Keep your appointments, have impeccable oral hygiene, don’t break your brackets, and wear your aligners! Consistency with your treatment is the best way to fast track it. Please tell me your goals so we can try to gear your treatment to your life events. Always keep in mind though, Rome wasn’t built in a day; nothing worth having comes easy; and eyes on the prize!

Today is a perfect day for this post! Following up from @sandiegoorthodontist on this #malocclusionmonday! Let’s talk: CROWDING. I have a lot of patients come in and say they want their lower front teeth fixed because they’re crowded and don’t look great. And yes, I am totally on board the #lookgoodfeelgood #selfcare train. But crowded teeth don’t need to be straightened just for it to look good! I’ve got many, many more reasons! Imagine a snowball effect > your teet...h are crowded, and it makes it hard for you to brush and floss. So you don’t floss as much there, or maybe you even skip it when brushing because your teeth and gums bleed or are sensitive. This leads to SO many downstream problems. I’ve seen: 1 Bone loss around crowded lower teeth - When we unravel the crowding with braces or @invisalign the bone levels are lowered because bacteria have destroyed the bone between your teeth. 2 Gum recession - as the bone is lost around crowded teeth, the gums follow after it and expose the tooth structure. This can cause tooth sensitivity and discomfort. 3 Cavities - from being unable to clean effectively around the crowding. 4 Low self esteem - it breaks my heart to see people not smile because they are self conscious about their teeth. 5 TMJ issues - some patients often bite differently to avoid uncomfortable crowded areas in their teeth (a shift) and this can potentially cause long term TMJ damage 6 Painful biting and chewing - crowded lower front teeth can over-erupt and impinge on the roof of the mouth, leading to ulcerating and damage. So - in summary, not just for looks! But for function and overall oral health. I love unraveling crowded teeth because it solves the root of the problem and prevents the downstream consequences! Call Roxy at (818)242-3377 to schedule your complimentary consultation with me today.

In case you needed a reminder for today

Stocking up the office with some supplies today to treat patients I’m always smiling under this mask!

The worst feeling ever! How can we fix it? We give you a little welcome packet with a toothbrush , toothpaste, floss, floss threaders, and a little box filled with a few strips of soft orthodontic wax. It looks like those little orange boxes in the picture. How do you use it? 1Pinch off a little piece of the wax with your fingernail... Roll it into a little ball 2Look at the area in your mouth where the braces are bothering you - try to dry the area with some tissue. 3Press the wax gently on the sharp wire, the poky hook, or wherever you feel discomfort. Then relax! Call or text to let us know and we will take care of you! Always check before leaving your appointment that there is nothing sharp or poky - and even when you check; sometimes the wire slides around or comes out the back (especially in the beginning). I promise it gets better!

Happy Monday! Let’s talk: OPEN BITES So, what is an open bite?? Imagine biting down and some of your teeth just ...don’t touch. Specifically, there is no overlap. Let’s focus on if your front teeth not touching. How does this happen? There are a multitude of causes for open bites as listed below - they can range from literally obstructive reasons that would prevent your teeth from coming together (tongue thrust habit that pushes your teeth apart, finger sucking, ...and prolonged pacifier use) to more complex reasons such an airway obstruction leading to mouth breathing and possible development of an open bite. Other complex reasons could include facial muscle weakness and TMJ problems. Open bites can be purely dental in nature where correcting the teeth usually corrects the bite; but they can also be skeletal. Skeletalopen bites tend to be more difficult to correct and can often require either extractions or surgery. Let’s say you don’t get the open bite fixed - what’s the worst that’ll happen? 1 Compromised esthetics open bites can present with minimal, asymmetric, and incorrect teeth display. 2 Speech difficulty - our teeth need to correctly overlap in order for our tongues and lips to properly produce sounds to make words. 3 Eating difficulty - remember my post yesterday about being grateful for my overbite? Open bites force patients to eat solely on their back teeth. Not only is this difficult for eating, those back teeth are working way too hard - which leads me to my next point... 4 TMJ issues - my open bite patients often have TMJ concerns as well. There are extensive studies done and no - one does not cause the other; however, correction of the bite can potentially aid in easing the symptoms of TMJ because the force is then properly distributed over the teeth - and transmitted better to our joints. 5 Teeth damage - our bites are incredible. If put together correctly, they should last a lifetime. Improper bites however can result in broken, flat teeth and chipped cusps. I’d love to know if you think you might have an open bite so I can take care of you! Do you know what your bite is like?

Reflecting on a happy, busy week of seeing patients The best part of the week was seeing this pre-teen girl OVER THE LITERAL MOON about getting her braces on. I get so amazed when I see young patients understand the value of the outcome of orthodontic treatment. I know, I know - they’re excited about the colors and their friends have it. BUT - I know also within them is the understanding of what a beautiful, healthy smile can give you in life. The confidence of a beautif...ul smile is the power it gives when you walk into a room knowing YOU OWN IT Your smile is the key to breaking barriers, building relationships, and getting to where you want in life. I know it because I see it every day, and I live it every day. That young girl knows it, and I hope you do too. Never hesitate to invest in yourself because you’ll never know where it can take you in life

Braces, frizzy hair, and feeling chubby - sums up high school for me. Can anyone relate? I finally found a flat iron and destroyed my hair for most of high school. Braces came off to reveal a big smile. I also finally sadly learned you can’t eat Doritos every day after school and expect to fit in the jeans size you wanted. Every time I meet a new patient in their high school years I try to remember I am talking to that version of myself. There’s a lottttttttt mo...re going on under the surface of a quiet teenager and I try to make it a point to find that out. I always remind them they are incredibly smart, beautiful (boys too! We all are!), have value, and this phase of their life will pass. 13 Reasons Why on Netflix was a good reminder to never take anything anyone says too lightly! Teens are such an important population for me to treat because I know the impact of positive influence in their life. I’ve seen patients start quiet and surly, and then finish treatment with a shining confidence that brings me so much joy to see. Seeing this change affected me so much that I wrote about it in my personal statement to dental school! So this version of Marianne in the photo with straightened first, then curled hair, make up and a big smile definitely didn’t happen overnight, but I’m happy my braces had something to do with it! See more

Just a couple of helpful reminders from Dr. Marianne! Book your new smile consultation now on our website 818-242-3377... www.drmarianneorthosdo.com live bookings Located at 320 Arden Ave Suite 200 Glendale CA 91203

To bend wire? Or reposition a bracket? When you’re getting close to the end of orthodontic treatment, your orthodontist will most likely make little bends in your wire to get your teeth perfect (if they’re hopefully me, or like me I use that birdbeak plier in my right hand). Some orthodontists however prefer to remove the bracket of the misaligned teeth, and place it in a better spot. There’s different reasons why to do one over the other. I think most orthodontists... do a combination of both throughout the treatment. I personally love bending wire. It used to be such a mystery to me but it clicked and now it’s just too fun My style is to do bends in the wire near the end of treatment, but doing all the repositions I need early on during the treatment. It’s similar to painting the background of a picture first (repositions) and then painting the finer details of picture (wire bending) at the end! See more

What Should My Child Avoid Eating with Braces? I get this question, without fail, every time I put braces on a patient. We have a list that we always give to patients and we verbally tell our patients what to avoid. HOWEVER ... Reading a boring list never really sticks So instead, just take a look at this picture, and you’ll get the idea! WHAT TO AVOID HARD, CHEWY, STICKY, CRUNCHY, SUGARY, AND ACIDIC FOODS FOR EXAMPLE: gum, nuts, ice, caramel, chips, toasted bagels, crunchy bread, pizza crust, carrots, apples, soda, sugary juice, popcorn All these foods are prone to breaking the braces which can SLOW DOWN your treatment, permanently damage your teeth, and even be costly to repair . Soda with braces is a huge no-no; and so are super sugary foods because these can cause cavities and ugly white spots on your teeth. You can cut up big pieces of food like bread or apples into small bite-sized pieces to avoid breaking the braces. Any questions? What did you miss eating the most with braces?

Name a better part of the braces experience ...I’ll wait. Okay, maybe taking them off is the best part. But the colors are RIGHT UP THERE. Getting holiday colors , matching your prom dress, going for Lakers colors...it’s so fun and personalized ... These are called O-rings, A-lastiks, elastic ligatures, but to everyone - it’s just...the colors. They hold the wire to the braces that I put on your teeth. It’s what makes metal or clear braces pop with color It’s been great seeing people who usually get blah colors switch it up to something bright because they’re hidden under their mask it’s what inspired me to do my first #igreel 2 posts back! I’ve been seeing people more okay with braces now that we are wearing masks and staying indoors anyways! Just you wait Summer 2021, we’re coming for you ...please, please be better than Summer 2020

Why do I need jaw surgery?!? Sometimes there’s no way around it, and I have to tell patients in my professional opinion - their best treatment option involves jaw surgery. Usually the questions that come after include WAIT, my teeth are that bad?!? or Are they gonna break my jaw?! ... I want to clear the air here and say it rarely has to do with your teeth being bad! The purpose of jaw surgery is to fix the jaws. Either the front to back position of the upper and/or lower jaw, a width discrepancy of usually the upper jaw, or an incorrect jaw growth pattern. You can see in the infographic the most common different types and reasons for surgery. There are many specialized surgeries that oral surgeons do as well. Another question I get often: do I get the surgery first and then braces? How does it work? Quick answer: we usually start treatment first braces or even Invisalign nowadays, you have treatment for usually about a year to year and a half. Get the surgery with braces on. Then we detail and wrap you up 6 months to hopefully at most a year after surgery to reveal your beautiful outcome I’ve seen cases of doing surgery before braces and that is up to your surgeon and orthodontist to decide what is the best treatment for you I love what jaw surgery can do for patients because orthodontics can only fix teeth jaw surgery fixes the positions of the jaws when the bite is too severely off due to an improper position of the jaws. The results are often amazing, and life changing! Some amazing surgeons I know - my classmate from dental school @soel_surgeon , and a discovery from IG @raniahabib.md.dds and a local office doing surgery @oralmaxsurgery. Check them out if you haven’t already!