Who’s a Good Candidate for Braces?
If you would like your smile to look more aesthetic and be healthier, traditional metal braces are a good solution to help you achieve your ideal smile. Before Dr. Pribyl can start your treatment, he must first determine if traditional braces are the best solution for you. This requires a complete dental exam including x-rays. Typically, most patients are good candidates for traditional braces. As long as you don’t have unhealthy teeth or gum disease, you’re likely a good candidate for braces.
What Problems Can Braces Address?
If your smile contains one or more of the following problems, braces can address them.
- Malocclusion: overbite, underbite, crossbite
- Crooked teeth
- Gapped teeth
- Crowded teeth
Traditional Braces Treatment Process
After Dr. Pribyl determines you’re a good candidate for traditional braces, he will take impressions of your teeth and use your x-rays to map out your treatment plan. He will then glue metal brackets to each of your teeth and attach the archwire using small rubber bands called ligatures. You will get to choose the color of your ligatures each time we tighten your braces at every appointment!
Between appointments, the pressure of the archwire will pull your teeth into their desired position. About every 4 to 6 weeks, you will visit our dental office in Lee’s Summit, MO for a checkup. During this time, we will either change or tighten your archwire and switch out the ligatures with a fresh set. If we’re correcting any bite problems, we may also require you to wear rubber bands attached to the clasps on your braces in a specific direction. These rubber bands are essential and must be changed every few hours to properly correct your bite.
Dr. Pribyl may also use MOPS or VPRO+ alongside your braces treatment. These additional treatments accelerate tooth movement by stimulating the bone that surrounds a tooth. By including this technique with your treatment, he can reduce your treatment time by up to 50%.
Braces Care Tips
After your braces are attached, we will provide you with a list of foods you shouldn’t eat to avoid breaking your brackets. The list includes nuts, hard candy, bread or chips, sticky candy, popcorn, and a few other items. We will also instruct you on how to care for your braces. We highly recommend using an electric toothbrush to effectively clean your teeth each time you brush your teeth. Our team will also show you how to use a floss threader so you maneuver between the brackets to floss your teeth.
Completing Braces Treatment
Once your teeth reach their optimal position, we will remove your braces. We will then provide you with a retainer to wear first all day long and then eventually only at night. You should continue to wear your retainer for the rest of your life at least for a few nights per week. If you don’t consistently wear your retainer, especially right after you get your braces off, it’s very likely your teeth will shift.
If you’re ready to begin your journey to a straighter smile with help from traditional braces, now is the time to get started. Please contact Center for TMJ and Sleep Apnea to learn more about our braces treatment and to find out if it’s the right solution for you. Give us a call at (816) 795-1000 to request an appointment.