Just as not all orthodontic treatments are the same, the recommendations for their care vary depending on the type of appliance we are using. There are removable systems (they are removed and put on to eat, brush your teeth or at specific times) and fixed bracket systems (they stick to the teeth and the metal elements that make the traction are anchored to them). In addition, orthodontics can be worn by your children or you are the one who is doing it.
Removable appliance: They are those that we can use during the hours recommended by the dentist and then remove them from our mouth. They fit our teeth with pressure, moving them to the desired shape. In some of them it is necessary to give them “turns” to increase this pressure. If they have not been given for more than three weeks without the supervision of the orthodontist, it should not be done, since keeping it like this does not have a negative effect on the treatment.
These devices sometimes have a face mask, which comes with elastic bands that will have to be changed once a week.
Behind these devices we find the most famous, the braces : they are metallic pieces stuck to our teeth that, by means of pressure, will gradually mold them. The pressure increases with each visit to our orthodontist, so that like removable braces, if we cannot go to the office, there will be no problem in spending more days with the same bracket position. These devices can also increase their pressure by using rubber bands, which will join both teeth in the same row, as well as their colleagues in the row below or above.
Once we have managed to have the teeth we wanted, there is a device that will help us keep them that way for longer, these are the retention devices . In this case they can be transparent cedulas that are placed at night during the hours of sleep and help us to keep the teeth in position; They can also be bars that cover the teeth from the inside, so that the first line (the visible one) maintains its position.
All these tips must be followed with good dental hygiene in which you have to brush your teeth at least 3 times a day, rinse with a mouthwash (it can be for total protection or for some specific purpose, such as caries prevention or caring for gums), watch out for hard, sticky foods, cut with a knife and fork instead of teeth. Finally, we must also pay attention to our diet , in which vitamins must be present through fruit and vegetables.
