I was very excited to be attending the International Orthodontic Congress in Sydney with the rest of the MOG team.  Not the least of which was because I now had a set of upper braces that I could show off with pride, rather than hide my rotated teeth as I mingled with industry professionals.

I was also excited for the things that I would learn from attending some of the lectures.  Whilst I am not part of the nursing team at MOG, I certainly have a newfound appreciation for the orthodontic process as I am experiencing it first hand.

In later posts I will impart (in my own simple terms) some of the interesting facts I learned.  But for now…remember that wire change I experienced?  Well after only a few days I was still having difficulty eating, so it was soft muffins, rice (with soft vegetables) and soft bread sandwiches for me!

2 interesting things I learned at the Orthodontic Congress:

• The brackets in my mouth, known as DQ brackets are the very latest technology that many practices are not yet using…I felt very special!
• The position of the teeth is effected by things such as genetics, loose lips, tight lips, tongue thrust habits, thumb sucking…there are many different ways to move teeth though rotation, tipping, torquing, extrusion, intrusion, protraction…That’s why the orthodontists need those extra years of post graduate study to learn to use the right movement method to ensure that the forces applied to your teeth are going to produce the right results.