In-House Removable and Permanent Retainers
Retainers are a crucial step in your orthodontic treatment. At Frigo Orthodontics, we will discuss every part of your journey with you ahead of time so that there are no surprises. After finishing with orthodontic treatment, a vital part of maintaining your beautiful smile is wearing retainers. In fact, it takes at least a year after orthodontic treatment for the bones in your mouth to set. In other words, your teeth will shift if you don’t properly wear retainers.
We want to help you protect your investment in orthodontic treatment. The time you or your child spends wearing braces is only part of the process. To help you maintain perfectly aligned teeth, we include a complimentary, lifelong retention plan for your retainers. These will be expertly personalized and crafted in our in-house lab.
Are retainers necessary after braces?
You’ve invested time and money into orthodontic treatment. You have meticulously flossed and brushed your teeth. You never missed an orthodontic appointment. Now, after several months, it’s time to get your braces off. While you have a perfect smile now, this is not the end of your treatment. Retainers after braces, as well as clear aligners, are absolutely necessary.
You may wonder why you need to wear retainers. Think of it like this: braces or aligners are only the first step in your treatment, meant to fix your teeth. After straightening your teeth, correcting your bite, or reducing overcrowding, your teeth will want to go back to where they’re comfortable. Without your braces on, they tend to relapse and move back to their original position. In order to prevent this, you need to wear retainers.
Retainers serve a vital purpose: to maintain the results of your orthodontic treatment. If you don’t wear them, you may notice your teeth begin to shift in as little as two weeks after having your braces removed.
What is the difference between a permanent retainer vs removable?
Wearing retainers after braces or aligners is a must, so let’s explore the difference between removable retainers and permanent, or fixed, retainers.
Permanent Retainers
As the name suggests, permanent– or fixed– retainers are attached to your teeth indefinitely. A single thin wire is affixed on the inside of your teeth, preventing your teeth and jaw from shifting. While removable retainers can be taken out at any time, only an orthodontist can remove permanent retainers. With proper care, they can last up to 20 years.
Since they are attached to the inside of the mouth, fixed retainers won’t show when you smile. Resting on four to six teeth, they will keep your entire arch in place long-term. They do require good oral hygiene practices, but you will never lose or forget to wear them. At Frigo Orthodontics, we strongly recommend affixing permanent retainers to the front bottom teeth after orthodontic treatment.
Removable retainers
Immediately after your braces are taken off, removable retainers are made specifically for your mouth. Some orthodontic practices still use putty to take an impression of your teeth, but we will use the latest technology to scan your mouth within minutes. With a 3D model of your teeth, our lab technician will fabricate your retainers from durable high-grade plastic.
These removable retainers slip over your teeth much like a very thin mouthguard. Similar to clear aligners, they are virtually unnoticeable. You can take these retainers off at any time to eat or brush your teeth. However, we recommend that you wear your removable retainers for the majority of the day for the first six months. After this time period, you’ll need to indefinitely wear your retainers while you sleep.
Getting retainers at Frigo Orthodontics
We’re committed to providing you with a beautiful smile for a lifetime. After removing your braces or finishing your treatment with aligners, we’ll immediately get you set up with retainers. Fabricated with the highest quality materials in our own lab, we will affix a permanent retainer to the inside of your front lower teeth. We’ll also provide a hand-crafted clear retainer for your top arch.
We offer a lifetime retention plan, replacing your retainers free of charge, no matter what happened to them or how much time has passed since you received treatment. We only ask that you bring your plaster mold with you to your visit.
When it comes to protecting your smile, every day is crucial. If you have forgotten to wear your retainers and are experiencing movement in your teeth, please contact us immediately.