An Exclusive Interview with Dr. Mychi Nguyen, orthodontist at Dental Depot North OKC
With five orthodontic practices in the OKC Metro, we get a lot of questions about ortho treatment. We sat down with one of our orthodontists, Dr. Mychi Nguyen at Dental Depot North OKC to answer some of our patient’s most asked questions. Why should you get orthodontic treatment? Let Dr. Nguyen share her insight on why braces or Invisalign® can enhance your smile!
Dental Depot:
We can just start by talking a little bit about you and how you got into orthodontics.
Dr. Mychi “N” Nguyen:
My name is Dr. Mychi Nguyen. I knew I wanted to be an orthodontist since I was in the second grade. I just knew. I don’t know, there’s something about teeth that just really fascinates me.
I found myself just being really drawn to people’s smiles. I think part of it was, you know, I didn’t get orthodontic treatment like that when I was younger. So, I decided this is what I really want to do. That’s how I kind of got started in orthodontics. It started from pretty early on.
DD:
Wow, that’s great! So, what is your favorite part of orthodontics and the whole practice?
MN:
I would say my favorite part is the interactions with patients. When patients come in, we really get to know them, their families, and we get to know their hobbies and interests, and they really become like family to us. That’s one of my favorite parts. The other is just seeing their confidence improve with each and every visit. So, I have some patients coming in who initially don’t really smile showing their teeth. But after a couple of months, they see the improvement, their moms are telling me they’re always showing their teeth and basically, they’re smiling. That is so gratifying to me!
DD:
That’s great! Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about the work that you do here? Are there other aspects of Dental Depot that you like?
MN:
I love working with my team. I have a fantastic team. We have a lot of fun here and I think patients see that. Going to work doesn’t really feel like going to work, it just feels like I’m going out to you know, hang out with my friends here! Interacting with my team and my patients is probably one of my favorite parts of working here.
DD:
That’s awesome. So now let’s talk a little bit about North OKC Orthodontics specifically. What do you think Dental Depot does differently than other local ortho centers?
MN:
So, with Dental Depot, I think what’s unique about us is each of the five ortho practices in Oklahoma City is connected to a general dentistry practice. What’s nice about that is when we are co-treating with our general dentists, it makes the process a lot smoother. So, if I ever have questions, or if they have questions about the patient’s treatment plan, we are just down the hall from each other. We can collaborate and it just helps the patient experience.
DD:
It’s definitely a benefit to have those practices next to each other. So, you kind of talked a little bit about how you like being able to work with the team. How does your team work together to provide care for each patient?
MN:
Each team member here in our office has a role. I’m the orthodontist, I have my dental assistants, and I have my front desk staff. However, each of us is cross-trained within each other’s roles as well. So, we fill in where needed. If, say, we’re not as busy in the back and the front desk is needing some assistance, some of us can go up there and help with answering phone calls. Sometimes if my assistants are all busy, I can jump in and assist as well. So, we do fill in wherever needed in order to enhance the care for our patients.
DD:
What is the patient experience like in this office? what can a patient expect when they come in for a consultation?
MN:
When patients first walk into our office, they’re greeted by our front desk staff, and that’s where they fill out paperwork. After that, my treatment coordinator brings them back so we can take some records, like photos and X-rays. Then, I come in to meet the patients and examine them and we go over some treatment options for them.
DD:
From consultation to regular checkups to final result, what can patients expect?
MN:
After the consultation, and they’ve decided on their treatment option that they’d like to go with, the next steps vary a little bit between traditional braces and Invisalign®. For traditional braces after the consultation, we would bond brackets onto their teeth and then we put the wires on. This process normally takes about an hour. Then they would come back and see us about every six to eight weeks. The overall length of treatments can vary from patient to patient, depending on their needs.
For patients who are doing Invisalign®, we take a 3D scan of their teeth. And from that, we get a model of what their teeth look like. With the model, I work with the lab technician to design their smiles.
Once the trays get printed, they come back to our office. This typically takes a couple of weeks after the initial scan. The patients get the entire set of trays and they will change their trays out once a week. Each tray will move their teeth a little bit at a time. After that initial set, we might do another one just to fine-tune everything, or we could be done.
Once patients are satisfied with their results with either braces or Invisalign®, we would scan their teeth for the retainers. And the retainers typically come in about two weeks. For braces, once patients have their retainers, that’s when we take off the braces.
DD:
That sounds great. I am curious, can patients see possible results of their treatment before they even begin?
MN:
Yes, we do scans here with iTero 3D scanners. So, instead of the traditional alginate impressions, we do scanning, which is a more comfortable experience for patients. Not only that but there is a function that allows patients to really quickly see what their final result would look like. So, it will actually generate a model of what their teeth would look like so they can have a sneak peek of their new smile before they even start the treatment.
DD:
What are the benefits of orthodontic treatment? Why would someone want to get this done?
MN:
So, of course, there are cosmetic reasons. Many patients want to enhance their smile aesthetically. But there are also health benefits to getting orthodontic treatment. If the patient’s bite is not properly aligned, over time, the enamel can have excessive wear. So, we correct the bite to decrease the risk of long-term damage. Patients can also develop gum recession. This means their teeth are moving out of the bone and the gum is lower on their teeth. Many health problems like that can happen if their bite is not correct, so orthodontic treatment can reduce these risks. It can improve the patient’s chewing abilities as well.
DD:
Okay, now. Are ortho treatments generally easier for adults or children?
MN:
I find that children tend to feel the soreness that results from orthodontic tooth movement a little bit less. I actually find that my adult patients are typically the ones who say that it’s uncomfortable. And so, I would say in that regard, it can be easier for children. However, I think both children and adults tolerate that discomfort pretty well, especially with Invisalign®.
DD:
And when should parents bring children in for an ortho consultation?
MN:
The first time parents should bring their children in for an orthodontic visit should be around age seven because that’s when some of the more permanent teeth are starting to come in. We do want to look early, though we may not necessarily do anything yet. We might have them come back periodically and monitor how the permanent teeth are coming in. We’ll probably see them once a year. If there is anything that needs to be done, we like to correct it early. If needed, we can create spaces and improve how their permanent teeth come in.
DD:
So, what are your thoughts on at-home orthodontics, like those advertised on social media?
MN:
So, in my opinion, orthodontic treatment should be monitored by a dental professional. There are certain risks associated with orthodontic treatment that if not monitored, could cause big issues for the patients down the road. Some of these risks include moving teeth out of the bone, and the bite not being properly aligned. If the treatment plan was not designed correctly, then they might be hitting their front teeth too much rather than the back and this can actually cause their teeth to become mobile and patients might have bone loss surrounding those teeth.
DD:
Yeah, you don’t want that to happen.
MN:
No, no. So, definitely see dental professionals so that you can have your orthodontic treatment monitored.
DD:
Awesome. One last question I have is which method of orthodontic treatment do you prefer?
MN:
I actually really love both traditional braces and Invisalign®. I like certain aspects of both. So, it just depends on the patient, and the individualized treatment for their needs. For example, Invisalign® is fantastic at treating open bites, and traditional is better for extraction cases. I like traditional because I like for the patients to get creative with the colors. And then Invisalign®, of course, is nice for patients who care more about visual aesthetics and don’t want to deal with metals in brackets.
DD:
All right, and that’s all the questions I have written down. Do you have anything else that you want to talk about, as far as Invisalign® goes? Things patients might want to know coming in for an Invisalign® consultation?
MN:
I would say that I have some patients who think that they’re too old for Invisalign®, or too old for orthodontic treatment. I want to tell those patients that there is no such thing as being too old for ortho. I have patients in their 70s undergoing treatment. And a lot of them, when they are done with treatment, said that it was such a great decision. They they’re glad they made that decision to get orthodontic treatment. As long as their teeth and gums are in good condition, then they would be a good candidate for orthodontic treatment.
DD:
Yeah, that’s awesome! Thank you so much for sitting down and talking with me about orthodontics and Invisalign® treatments.
MN:
Thank you so much!
Wondering if Invisalign® could be right for you? Request an appointment at Dental Depot Orthodontics! Sign up for a FREE consultation today.
Dr. Mychi Nguyen comes to Oklahoma from sunny California, graduating from dental school from the University of California in San Francisco. Dr. Nguyen, ‘Dr. N’ for short, takes pride in getting to know each of her patients and loves seeing their smiles get brighter with each visit. On the weekends you can find her outdoors hiking or indoors reading a good book.