All About Retainers

When you get your braces off, you get a retainer to keep them in place the first few months when they might move back.

There is the classic retainer which is one wire that fits around the front of your teeth while it is connected to a plastic customizable piece that fits over the roof and bottom of your mouth. This retainer is very fragile and very expensive to replace, so always put it in a safe place when you take them out. For this type of retainer, you take them out when you eat and when you brush your teeth.

Cleaning your retainer: Clean your wire retainer often, but do not boil it! This will warp the plastic part of it. Instead soak it in vinegar, and then brush it thoroughly with your tooth brush.

Before you put your retainer back in, brush your teeth thoroughly and floss your teeth. Then brush your retainer carefully. This prevents the build up of plaque on your retainer which, similar to plaque on your teeth, causes bad breath and is just plain nasty after a while.

All this being said about cleaning, we’d recommend not even wearing your retainer out to eat so that you will avoid the problem in the first place. This will also help to prevent you from losing it and the need to brush your teeth before putting it back in.

In my (Amanda) experience, I received a
temporary, clear fitted retainer that was an exact mold of my teeth. You couldn't even see this one when I had it on. I wore this one until I got my normal retainers made later. Again, if you get this retainer, it is very fragile. Brush this retainer a lot, since it holds plaque and food really well.

Another tip is when you’re wearing either retainer; don’t play with them in your mouth. This looks kind of funny to other people and you increase the risk of breaking it.

We know that your orthodontist has probably told you this already, but, similar to headgear and bands, you just need to diligently wear your retainer!

-Amanda and Erik

Getting Braces Off: Amanda

Amanda: When I went to sit in the orthodontist chair, the first thing my orthodontist did was to check one last time that I had no overbite and my teeth were straight. Once he was certain this was the case, he whipped out a special “bracket remover”. Then he started to pull/cut the brackets off my teeth (I couldn’t quite tell since I couldn’t see it!). Once he had finished that, I rinsed a bit to get the pieces of dried glue out of my mouth. As I was rinsing, I felt my real teeth for the first time in two and a half years!

Then my orthodontist took out another tool, a little circular, spinning grinder, and ground off the old glue that kept the brackets on. I rinsed again. They were so much smoother! After I’d rinsed, he got out yet another tool, a rubber tipped grinder, and then scraped off the remaining glue. Again I rinsed.

Next was the polishing. Your dentist has probably done this with you. He took some cherry flavored gritty paste and, in effect, rubbed it over my teeth with his tooth polisher. Rinse again. In case you were wondering nothing hurt so far, except the bracket-pulling was a little bit uncomfortable.

Now that I had shiny, smooth teeth, he made a mold of my mouth so I could get my clear fitted retainer later that day. This process consisted of putting a hardening rubber on my teeth and letting it harden into a mold of my teeth. Next came picture time. My orthodontist took pictures of the inside of mouth from all angles. He then took face and profile shots of me smiling and not smiling.

After that, I went to the front desk and picked the color of my normal retainer. I chose camouflage.

Erik: I was in the waiting room basically listening to the sounds of grinding, the whir of little electrical devices, and the occasional “Go ahead and rinse now” from our orthodontist. Then about half an hour later, Amanda came out of the orthodontist office and she was smiling and it looked amazing! I remembered back to how her teeth looked before she got braces, and it was a huge difference. I was happy to see that the end result was so great, and I couldn’t wait until I got my braces off.

So we just want to say hang in there! Your teeth will look great when your all done!

-Erik and Amanda

Facts about Fiberotomy

At the end of your journey with braces, your orthodontist might suggest you get what is called a “fiberotomy”. This is usually suggested instead of the classic retainer. In this post, we will give an argument for getting this operation and one for not getting it. Also we will include some technical information about the procedure.

A fiberotomy is a surgical operation to sever the fibers that hold your teeth in their current position. You'd get this procedure done after you’ve straightened your teeth with braces and such. Sometimes the “gingival fibers” as they are called will pull your teeth back to where they were before your braces. Check out these links for more information:

Fiberotomy:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiberotomy

http://www.austinperiodontal.com/procedures-fiberotomy.asp

Gingival Fibers:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gingival_fibers

Arguments for getting a fiberotomy:
• Snipping those fibers will ensure that your teeth will not go back to their pre-brace position.
• Chances are you will not have to get a retainer. With a retainer, it guarantees that you’re teeth stay straight…as long as you wear it. So if you get a fiberotomy you don’t have to worry about the hassle of losing your retainer or always wearing it.

Arguments for not getting a fiberotomy:
• It is usually not covered in your insurance, as it is considered a “cosmetic” surgery.
• It is said to be nearly painless, for they give you local anesthesia, but there have been accounts that say otherwise. Just read this person’s account of their experience.

http://healthmad.com/medicine/fiberotomy/

• And take a look at this picture...pretty gruesome huh?

http://www.pittsburghdentalimplants.com/periodontal-diseases/fiberotomy.html~

• The fiberotomy is a relatively new procedure that hasn’t been around long so it’s not as tested as the retainer. See Part 2.2 of this article from the UK.

http://www.taysideorthodonticmcn.scot.nhs.uk/documents/guidelines/clinical_guidelines_orthodonitic_retention.pdf

In our opinion, besides the fact that the reasons for not getting it done surpass the reasons for getting a fiberotomy, snipping fibers in the body is usually not a good idea. Those fibers are there for a reason. The retainer is a tried and true method of keeping your teeth straight.
Keep in mind these are only our opinions, as neither of us has had the surgery. Be sure to consider both choices!

-Amanda and Erik

Battle of the Bands

Either or during the time you are wearing your braces, you will probably encounter some type of band. They all have different purposes. Here are some common types.

Crisscross bands: These are circular rubber bands that go from either the top right of your mouth to the bottom left, or top left to the bottom right of your mouth. These bands fix asymmetrical jaw growth which is where one side of your jaw grows forward faster than the other side does. The bands force the side that’s growing faster to “hold up” for the other side.

Top bottom bands: These bands stretch from the top right to the bottom right or top left to the bottom left, and are much thicker
than the crisscross bands. Top bottom bands make sure that when you bite down all your teeth line up. The first time I, Erik, wore my top bottom band I made the mistake of yawning. Of course the rubber band snapped inside my mouth which, I’m sure you can imagine, did not feel very good.

Spacers: These are little rubber bands that the orthodontist will push in between your two back molars on the top. This is usually done before you have your braces put on to make room for the bracket that goes on your back molar. The orthodontist usually will give you replacements, since spacers are easy to dislodge.

After the first week all these bands get easier to deal with, but you will always wake up a bit sore. Oh and by the way, the orthodontist will usually supply you with the bands so make sure to ask for a fresh bag of them when you go to get your braces tightened!

-Erik and Amanda