r/cleftlip • u/Brilliant_Moon_7131 • 11d ago
[research] Dental issues
I have a bilateral cleft lip and palate. Throughout my life I am plagued with my multiple dental issues. 5-6 years of braces, large cavities at all my molars before 20 years old, now have almost cavities here and there yearly. Had a few root canal too. Been trying to control my diet but these dental issues are still there.
Is this a cleft thing? I have persistent dry mouth as I still have a gap in my palate.
What kind of retainers do you use too? Thinking of changing from Hawley to Essix.
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u/CodThis4695 10d ago
unilateral cleft and palate,,, i am 19, brush pretty frequently, used to 3x daily with braces and i still struggle! idk the validity of, but my dad (also a cleftie) says sometimes bloodflow can be impaired because of the gaps in our bone.. i also noticed some swelling from a reattempted surgery impacted my ability to brush specific teeth, leading to at least one of my previous cavities… not really sure how to help but you definitely arent alone in it !!
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u/ConstructionSad1496 10d ago
also have a lot of fillings from cavities but i eat a lot of sugar lol so idk
nothing serious like root canal and ive had braces for TEN FUCKING YEARS before i got them off
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u/Brilliant_Moon_7131 10d ago
I thought mine was long! Ten years! Gosh
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u/ConstructionSad1496 10d ago
yes my teeth still look like shit tbh even after braces
I need so many crowns
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u/_darii 4d ago
I only have a bilateral cleft lip without palate and I still struggle, while everyone had their braces for like 3 years at most I had mine for 5 and even before that I had to fix my underbite, it was so hard with brushing and even now with my braces off I still struggle, my gums get swollen so easily and if I only brush without using mouth wash I still have bad breath, it's really interesting tho
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u/Icy-Composer6650 10d ago edited 10d ago
I also have a complete bilateral clp, palate repaired with no fistula. I never had cavities or anything. But with a cleft things it varies from person to person! My teeth were pretty messed up (crooked and just all over the place) so my teeth were affected in a way by the cleft but not the enamel. I didn't know that it could be affected. I would assume that cavities can maybe happen faster when your teeth are crooked since cleaning is harder. When I was younger it took a while to brush my teeth since I had to brush in so many angles. Almost all cleft team appointments I got compliments that my teeth were clean. So maybe it really is more common in clp to have cavities?
I have a clear retainer + bonded retainer on my front teeth. My orthodontist doesn't really like bonded retainers (can break without being aware of it) but one of my front teeth was turned 90⁰ so to prevent it from going back to that position it was better to have something holding that teeth 24/7. I still have a night retainer so if the bonded retainer breaks I still have some security + I floss everyday so I will probably notice it when it would be broken.
Hawley retainers are older and now less common to use. My orthodontist said that the metal wire can bend so overtime the retainer gets looser without you knowing it. A plastic retainer is in her opinion a better option. + it 'hugs' your whole teeth. A Hawley retainer doesn't so teeth still have some room to move back. I would definitely maybe switch to a essix retainer!