Hey guys, been a long time lurker here. I've been a patient with Dr How since Nov 2010...I read the reviews of this doctor here and that's why I decided to do my treatment with him.

Just wanted to ask those who've had braces and extractions with Dr How...did anyone regret extracting their four biscupids? When I went to the first consultation, Dr How suggested for me to get it as it would look 'nicer'.

I got the extractions done two months later and the thought of losing 4 teeth kinda made me sick. I didn't think too much about it until my father commented on how long my face became and when I was looking at my pics pre-braces last year, he was right! I used to have a somewhat oval and long face before but now it seems my cheeks have kinda sunken in.

I'm kinda worried now and paranoid at how I'll look post braces. Hope someone can reassure me. It's not helping when I've been googling extractions + Damon braces and I keep reading complaints about people having a 'dished in', flat face. This concerns me because every time I see the doctor, he comments on how much 'flatter' and 'better' my mouth area looks. (I don't want my face to become flat!)

Thanks for your feedback. If anyone can share pics of their smile and profile, that'd be great! =)

Hi Livon,

I wish I had the chance to ask Dr How to spare my teeth or at least only extract my bottom teeth. But whenever I went to visit him in the first two months, he'd ask me if I was ready to extract. Lol, I was too weak to say no. And he told me it was better to take out all four teeth or else it wouldn't be symmetrical. I regret taking out the top teeth because it wasn't too bad.

Anyways, you're lucky you got an option. I'd recommend keeping the two teeth and see if he can work around it.

Btw, went to see Dr Raymond to get my wires cut. When I told him my concerns about the 'flat' profile and the extractions giving me a 'long' face, he said I was one of the rarity who didn't like the slim look, lol. I told him I preferred my rounder face. I also asked him if I could get a wider arch as my bottom teeth feel too close together and my tongue feels crammed in. He said that I could ask Dr How to try to expand my bottom arch and top arch when I see him at my next appt.

I will bring this up to Dr How to see if he can do this...if it makes my lips look thinner, then I may not do it because I love my full lips!

Hope the screws will help you with your teeth!

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Added on August 24, 2011, 8:36 pmI think your teeth look great...do you have any problems with your bite? If it really bothers you, maybe you could look into Invisalign. But honestly, I don't think you need any ortho work.

This post has been edited by mataharih: Aug 24 2011, 08:36 PM

Fonte, did you extract your teeth already?

One thing after reading some few comments, it disturbs me that the Dr is extracting teeth based on what he thinks looks better. I'm not sure if he's exactly extracting teeth because it is more healthy for the gums and the jaw and instead on what he feels is the standard in beauty. But I know that he hasn't recommended extracting teeth for some people though. Again, I feel this is really weird.

When I looked at my profile pics pre-braces, I noticed that upper lip was more raised, so I had the look of my jaw being very 'full'. But I had a great wide smile and my bite wasn't too bad. The only problem was crowding. To me, it would have been easier if I had just gotten the braces to expand my jaw a bit to let in all my teeth but I trusted the doctor's opinions.

If you didn't extract your teeth yet, ask Dr How to work around it unless it is very urgent to do so.

It pisses me off that Dr How kept asking me to extract my teeth. When I see him again for my next appointment, I will ask him about the flat 'profile' and what he can do to avoid that look.

Hi Ouchie,

I've been to both orthos so if you'd like more info than what I'm giving right now, feel free to PM me.

First went to Dr How in 2010 and he seemed jovial in the beginning but he didn't fully explain his treatment plan with me. I may be in the minority who wasn't pleased with his treatment since other people on this board were happy with their results, so please bear in mind that this is just my experience and not something that should deter you from making your own decision. Dr How also pushed extractions on me even when I wasn't really sure about it and his bedside manner was quite rude. Rushing through the treatment due to the high number of patients he sees, rough when changing brackets, not explaining things in detail and handing me off to his assistants when he expanded his clinic to join up with the Beverly Wilshire group. I hated the way my teeth were pushed back into my face, causing an 'older, thinner' face. Oh yeah, I complained to the new office manager and she said she'll bring this up with the doctor and never got a call back from that office. Wasted RM6000 there. I didn't think they really cared about me as a patient there.

I hated my results and transferred to Dr Reuben who I can say is so much nicer and willing to talk to you about the treatment and most importantly, he asks about your opinions and what you'd like the outcome to be. I'm seeing an improvement in my profile and my teeth looks far better than it ever did before. The office staff are nice and pleasant. Oh and my teeth doesn't hurt when Dr Reuben adjusts them. Price wise, I think they're both more or less the same, Dr Reuben may be cheaper by a few hundreds.

PM me if you want more info, yeah?