We find that many of our patients come to their consultation with some questions in mind, and many times those questions are "which treatment will be the fastest?", "which option will be the least obvious" and "which products are the most comfortable?".The research and development happening in the dental and orthodontic industry over the past few decades has lead to a number of amazing new products, and self-ligating braces are just one of them! Conveniently, self-ligating braces are an effective and comfortable orthodontic product that offer the wearer many benefits, including a much more subtle look than traditional metal braces.
What are self-ligating braces?
Traditional braces use a bracket and wire system, just like self-ligating braces. But traditional braces require a ligature to connect the wire to the bracket, holding it firmly in place. Typically, wires or elastics are used as the "tie". If you've ever seen someone with brightly coloured braces, it's the elastic used to hold the wire in place that's showing its colour, not the bracket itself.
The entire need for a ligature is removed with self-ligating braces: there is a specially designed mechanism within the bracket itself to capture the wire and hold it firmly in place, so no wires or ties are necessary. This is beneficial for a few reasons.
How can self-ligating braces be less obvious?
Self-ligating brackets have been designed especially to accommodate the wire but no ties. That minimizes their appearance, making them more difficult to detect. It also makes them easier to get used to wearing, so people around you probably won't realize you're undergoing treatment.
How are self-ligating braces more comfortable?
Since they're thinner than traditional brackets and take up less space in your mouth, they don't cause as much discomfort in your first few weeks. Further, since they don't require a ligature, there's no chance that the ties holding the archwire in place will snap or let go and poke the inside of your mouth.
Another way self-ligating braces are more comfortable is because the tension is constant. Sometimes, the ties can loosen between your orthodontic appointments, relaxing the pressure on your teeth. When you visit your orthodontist for an adjustment the pressure will increase. Self-ligating braces won't loosen in the time between orthodontic appointments, so you'll feel the same amount of pressure with each wire, instead of varying levels.
How much do self-ligating braces cost?
Self-ligating braces are priced similarly to traditional braces. Docbraces never wants cost to stand in the way of you getting a beautiful healthy smile, so we offer a number of convenient payment plans. You can even estimate the cost of your treatment with our helpful Online Payment Calculator!
How long is treatment with self-ligating braces?
For some of our patients, the very best thing about self-ligating braces is that they can often reduce the total length of treatment by 4 to 6 months! That means that your beautiful healthy smile might take significantly less time to achieve than you first thought.
Why wait? Visit us for your free consultation and discuss your treatment options!
