The stages of treatment

Retainers

Retainers hold the teeth straight since teeth have a tendency to move back once the brace is removed.  Remember, we have forced the teeth in to a position they are not meant to be in and with some people, their teeth will always want to move therefore, retainers are an essential part of treatment.  Retainers are only required to be worn at night times.

There are retainers that you can take in and out or retainers that are glued to the inner surfaces of the front teeth.  These glued in retainers are called bonded retainers, they are not suitable for everyone and the NHS will not provide one if they have funded your treatment, the cost of which would be £150 each.  They are not permanent, so eventually they will need repairing or replacing further down the line at a cost also.

The usual retainers are the removable type and we advise that the patient wears them at night for the first 6 months after the brace has been removed, at least.

After 6 months we will advise each patient what to do depending on their initial problem.  But usually it is ok to reduce the amount the retainer is worn, down to 1-2 nights per week.  We do usually advise patients that if they never want their teeth to move, to carry on wearing their retainer(s), because our teeth are always on the move, even if you have had braces or not, the only way to guarantee they stay straight, is by carrying on with the retainers.