Types Of Braces

Thanks to today’s technology, patients now have many options when it comes to wearing braces during orthodontic treatment. While traditional metal braces are still widely used, clear braces are becoming increasingly popular, as are invisible removable aligners (Invisalign®) that can be worn by patients self-conscious about treatment.

Self-Ligating Braces

Self-ligating brackets are relatively new to orthodontics. These high-technology brackets have replaced the traditional metal brackets with elastics with an “openable gate” which is far more hygienic with less plaque retention than rubber ties. These braces have an implemented sliding technology that mitigates torque and force on individual teeth. The way the gate engages the wire in each slot determines how the tooth moves. Depending on which manufacturer produces the bracket, the brackets have varying levels of interactivity-how tightly the bracket hugs the wire for tooth movement.

Self-ligating brackets such as Damon, Empower, Smart Clip, as well as many others allow the orthodontist to choose the average three dimensional position each tooth will occupy in the future. Once the teeth are generally aligned, the orthodontist hand-bends the final wires to the patient’s personal best bite position to get the final tooth position prescribed.

At Advanced Orthodontics, our orthodontists take technology to the level beyond the brackets. While still using self-ligating brackets, we replace hand bent wires with robotically bent ones that are more accurate than a human can bend. The doctor prescribes this three dimensional bite position to a robot for a series of personalized wires. Just like in the rest of medicine with microscopic surgeries, robots are the most accurate treatment assistants to doctors today. Read more at Suresmile.

Clear Ceramic Braces

Clear braces are the most popular type of braces today for teens and adults. These braces are made of ceramic and other clear materials and are less visible on your teeth than metal braces. For this reason, ceramic braces are used mainly on older teenagers and adult patients who have aesthetic concerns. Even though they tend to be more aesthetically pleasing, ceramic braces require more attention to oral hygiene as they are larger than metal braces. Another benefit of our ceramic braces is that they don’t discolor like most do with certain foods and smoking. SureSmile digital diagnosis can also be used with these braces.

Wild Smile Braces

Wild Smile Braces are probably our most fun braces option (at least we think so!). Our younger patients in Interceptive Phase I treatment love this alternative to express themselves with unique shapes and colors for their braces. Colored ties are included and can be changed at every adjustment for maximum cool factor. Added bonus, we use SureSmile digital diagnosis with these braces as well!

Invisalign

Clear appliances (such as Invisalign®) use a series of invisible, removable, and comfortable aligners to straighten your teeth. And, no one can tell you are wearing those aligners because they are invisible! Not only are the aligners invisible, they are removable, so you can eat and drink what you want while in treatment, plus brushing and flossing are less of a challenge.

Invisible Braces

Braces that are attached to the inside surfaces of your teeth are lingual braces. These braces are lesser known, and sit on the back of your teeth throughout treatment. They are truly the only type of appliance that you cannot see! They are extremely effective when used in combination with SureSmile digital diagnosis. Best part? No one will know you are wearing them!