Dr. Ishwar Kumaran

Today smile has become one of the most important of one's personality. Be it personal, or professional. There are so many people who come down to the dentist to get their teeth corrected either cosmetic which includes crowns (porcelain fused metal, metal free) or laminates, or veneers. Or orthodontic tooth movement which is done to move teeth naturally. These are of various types (metal, ceramic, lingual, or invagilin or clear braces. Which usually as per case takes one yr to 1.5 years to get into perfect alignment. For this one must visit the dentist to look for all the clinical details, which as a dentist would decide the time duration and type of braces one would want to go for. At times, there are difficult cases in which extraction may or may not be required, a monthly visit to the dentist. Mild pain during tooth movement. Before we start any treatment we take records in the form of model X-rays. (full mouth, lateral ceph, photographs as per case. All the above details are used to develop a customized treatment plan. This is commonly done by fixing braces to your teeth and using a thin guiding wire to straighten the irregular teeth. Various steps include

Leveling and aligning

Space closing

Detailing and finishing

Retention

Dental braces care

Brush teeth regularly with paste you have to pay special attention to the brackets placed. Use an orthodontic brush, an interdental brush to remove all debris stuck between brackets.

Foods to avoid while wearing brackets

Chewing gum, sticky chewy food.

Sugar substitutes

Hard foods like carrots, apple, nuts which might break brackets.

Lastly, dental retainers which need to be placed for 24 hours initially for a period of 3 months and after that only at night during sleep. Retailers have to be worn for a period of 6 months to one yr. If retainers not worn teeth might start moving back to original position (relapse) so please do as per dentist's recommendations.