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Your role in caring for your smile.
- Your active role in orthodontic treatment helps ensure long-term
success.
- While you're in braces, it's important to practice good oral
hygiene and get regular dental checkups.
- Keeping your orthodontic appointments is crucial for the
success of your treatment.
- To get the most out of your treatment, be sure to follow
your orthodontist's instructions during and after treatment.
Your Major Role
You play a major role in the success of your orthodontic treatment.
Part of your responsibility is to understand the treatment goal,
the plan for achieving that goal, the changes that will take place
and how you can help bring those changes about.
Your orthodontist will give you specific instructions
throughout the course of treatment. It's important
to follow the orthodontist's instructions carefully.
Postponing appointments, following instructions incorrectly,
failure to follow through or even overzealous responses
can extend the length of your treatment.
Throughout the treatment's duration, dental hygiene
is extremely important. It's difficult to brush your
teeth effectively while wearing braces. That's why
extra time and care must be taken every time you brush.
Flossing is also critical. Since the archwire may prevent
conventional flossing, you may need to use floss threaders,
Floss threaders work a little like a flexible, large-eyed
sewing needle. Once you thread the floss through the
eye, you can insert the threader between teeth at their
base and move the floss up and down between the gum
line and the archwire.
It's important to keep up your regular dentist visits
during orthodontic treatment. Your dentist helps keep
those teeth you're straightening in healthy condition.
Your role in caring for your smile doesn't end when
orthodontic treatment does. In fact, the post-braces
period is extremely important in assuring long-lasting
results. That's because the bone needs time to strengthen
and provide stability for your new tooth positions.
A retainer is an appliance that holds teeth in place
after orthodontic treatment. Most retainers are removable.
Your orthodontist will tell you how many hours a day
you should wear your retainer. It's important to wear
your retainer as prescribed by your orthodontist to
prevent a relapse of your orthodontic problems. Once
teeth return to their pre-corrections positions, the
orthodontist may need to start all over again with
treatment. Some patients wear a fixed retainer, bonded
to the backs of the teeth, to provide permanent support.
If you stay with your treatment and follow through
with post-braces care, you can expect lasting results
from your orthodontic procedure.
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