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Everything You’ve Ever Wanted to Know About Retainers

A retainer is a custom made, removable or fixed appliance that helps teeth maintain their new position after braces have been removed. Doesn’t matter if you have had an orthodontic procedure to fix crowded and misaligned teeth, a retainer will keep teeth your teeth from getting back to their original position. Retainers are required for those who don’t want to wear braces again to correct shifting.

As long as you are adaptable any retainer is a good option. Here describes the different types of retainers and find which one suits the best for you.

Different Types of Retainers

Removable and Permanent retailers are the two types. Each retainer has its pros and cons, but they each serve the same purpose – to keep teeth straight after braces. Depending on your case, we may recommend one of the following types of retainers:

Removable Retainers

A vacuum form retainer is a removable retainer that is clear and aesthetically pleasing vacuum form retainer. It is a clear horseshoe-shaped form of material that is designed to fit to cover your teeth. What makes it good is that it is clean, convenient and not as bulky as other retainers. For those who have the habit of grinding teeth, this removable retainer maybe not a good option as they can be worn down due to repeated teeth grinding.

Another form of retainer is the Hawley retainer. It has been designed for your mouth that is attached to a wire that fits over the front of your teeth. It has the ability to make adjustments within and they are durable. Hawley retainers are a good option if you want to shift your tooth or teeth slightly and to re-straighten the teeth. You often can’t do that with other types of retainers. When wearing the only difficulty people find is with talking and swallowing.

Permanent/Fixed retainers

For a much rotated, crowded teething or had a lot of space in between them before the treatment, a permanent retainer is a good option. The good part is that you don’t have to worry about taking in or out since it is cemented to your teeth. The permanent retainers are difficult to clean. The lower front teeth tend to accumulate plaque over time leading to further dental issues. So if you do have a fixed lingual retainer, make sure you clean it carefully every day.

They sometimes are problematic and need more care than removable ones. If it breaks, you have to make an appointment fairly quickly to get it fixed to avoid shifting of teeth. Though these kinds of retainers are fixed, they are not foolproof.

How frequent you need to wear a retainer?

It is often recommended to wear retainers every night. Obeying what you have been advised will help to keep the retainers in place.

Why the retainers are a requisite?

If you don’t want to wear braces, retainers are very important. In Lakewood dental smile our team can align your teeth. Even after the braces are removed, a small force can make a shift in the alignment and placement and gradually it leads to bigger shifts. Retainers help prevent these shifts from occurring after braces are removed. Lakewood Dental Smile has a reputation as the most reliable dentist in Dearborn, Michigan for a wide array of dental diseases. If you have any queries related to orthodontic treatments, you can schedule an appointment with Lakewood Dental Smile.