The Most Common Orthodontic Procedures
Orthodontists are dental specialists who work to correct tooth alignment and bite problems in order to give you a perfect smile. Here, we’re listing a few of the most common treatments that orthodontists carry out.
Traditional Braces
Traditional metal braces are still a hugely popular form of orthodontic treatment across Australia for adults, teenagers and children. Braces consist of a series of brackets attached directly to your teeth, linked by wires which work to pull the teeth into their correct position.
Your orthodontist will tighten or loosen the wires over time as your teeth move over the course of a few months or years, depending on your situation. At Tony Weir Orthodontics, we can use subtle tooth-coloured brackets to minimise the aesthetic impact of your brace.
Lingual Braces
Lingual braces are similar to traditional braces in that they attach to your teeth and work to correct improper alignment. To affix a lingual brace, your orthodontist will attach brace brackets to the back of your teeth so that they are hidden from view.
The advantage of this system is that you still achieve the same straight smile but without having to feel self-conscious about wearing a brace. In addition to this, lingual braces have much less impact on your speech as they don’t interfere with the movement of your lips.
Invisalign
Invisalign is a highly effective method of straightening your teeth and correcting your smile without using braces. Instead of metal brackets and wires, you wear a clear plastic aligner tray on your teeth like a retainer. These trays get changed every two weeks to adjust to the changing shape of your teeth and can be removed for eating and cleaning throughout the day.
The biggest advantage of choosing Invisalign is that the aligners are virtually invisible so no one will know that you’re wearing them. This means that there’s no need to deal with confidence issues whilst you’re undergoing treatment as you will look exactly the same, only with your smile becoming straighter over time.
Retainers
A retainer or removable appliance is recommended for patients who have recently had tooth realignment treatment in order to maintain the new shape of their teeth. In order to keep your bite corrected and prevent teeth from shifting back into their original place, your orthodontist will prescribe you a retainer to wear at certain times.
There are a number of different types of removable appliances and the right one for you will depend on the treatment you’ve had and the issues that remain. Banded or bonded retainers can be glued to the back of teeth to maintain correct placement of one or more teeth, or a clear retainer can be worn overnight.
Orthodontic Elastics
Orthodontic elastics are a special type of rubber bands which are used in conjunction with your braces to help correct jaw problems or tooth alignment. These bands can pull your jaw forwards or backwards in order to improve your bite and speed up the process of tooth alignments.
To find out about how orthodontic treatment can help you get that killer smile, call Tony Weir Orthodontics now on 07 3054 6767 or visit our contact page for more ways to get in touch.