Placement of full fixed braces
The braces are generally placed at either one or two visits, depending on the particular Orthodontist’s preference.
It does not hurt!
“Injections” or “numbing” of the teeth is not required
The whole process can take between 30 minutes to 90 minutes, depending on the Orthodontist.
In all cases brackets are glued to to the front and side teeth.
For the molar teeth, some Orthodontists may glue a band around the whole tooth. In this instance “separators” would have been placed on the molar teeth the week before.
Some Orthodontists glue “tubes” to the molar teeth instead, in the same way as brackets on the front teeth. This is more comfortable and quicker than placing bands and also avoids the need for “separators”.
However, tubes are much weaker than bands and are more easily bitten off when if you are careless with your diet i.e. hard lollies and bones, crusts etc, are not diligently avoided.
Steps for getting your braces on
The teeth are first polished with a dental handpiece, a bit like an electric tooth brush.
The teeth are prepared with an etching gel prior to the glue being painted on.
The brackets are placed on each tooth with a self-curing or light-cured glue.
The cheek retractors are removed once the glue is set and the orthdontic wires are placed into the brackets. A lip retractor is used to keep lips and cheeks away from the teeth during the procedure.
Cementing of molar band
First the the Orthodontist will try several bands on each one of the molar teeth, to get the correct size.
Once the correct size bands have been selected, they are cemented into place using specially designed instruments and purpose- designed glues.
