As we have already advised dental care and treatment has advanced in leaps and bounds in recent years and this applies to orthodontics as well. Again everybody, if they are truthful, would ideally want nice straight teeth.
Conventional orthodontics involves the use of metal brackets and wires to align the teeth. These are still very effective but they do suffer from the fact that they can be difficult to get used to at least initially and also that they can be uncomfortable. Additionally no one really likes the thought of a mouthful of metal brackets and wires!
Tooth coloured brackets have helped and a number of different systems are promoted by companies. These advocate ‘short term orthodontics’ (STO). They involve the use of tooth coloured round wire and brackets to move the teeth. The wires are made of very flexible materials which help to align the teeth. Treatment times can be quicker but this will usually depend upon the starting position of the teeth and the fact that fewer wires are used than in conventional orthodontics.
The use of aligners has come to the fore over the past few years. These are made of a clear plastic material, so called ‘invisible braces’. They work in a series of, usually up to six aligners, each used in sequence. Each aligner is made on a model where the teeth have been slightly altered in position.
As the patient progresses through the sequence so the teeth are moved slightly with each new aligner.
The big advantage to the patient is that the aligners are removable, unlike fixed braces. This means cleaning the teeth is easier and because they are clear they are much less visible. Treatment times are longer and they cannot be used to treat all cases. However, they can be appropriate to undertake simple movements of teeth especially where there is slight misalignment of front teeth.
There is a lot of advertising and promotion for aligners and STO with the use of systems such as invisilign and six month smiles. Whilst these systems can produce good results, much depends upon the position of the teeth initially and the experience of the person undertaking the treatment.
At Wanstead Dental Practice we feel that it is essential to assess and diagnose the patient’s problem thoroughly first. Whilst there are many cases that can be treated by newer techniques and we do use them, it can be more important to know when a case is not suitable for aligners or short term orthodontics. This is where the experience of the dental team at Wanstead Dental Practice can be invaluable.
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Wanstead Dental Practice
1 Nutter Lane, Wanstead
London, E11 2HY
