The day the braces come off is an exciting one, both for patients, and for orthodontists, too! Here's what to do after your braces come off to keep your new smile straight and healthy.
The braces removal process is over in no time. Your orthodontist will carefully remove the braces, as well as any bonding cement that remains.
At Langley Orthodontics, we get almost as excited about this process as our patients do! For one thing, we enjoy seeing the outcome of the previous months or even years of treatment. But best of all, we love seeing our patients’ happy faces when they see their straight new smiles unobstructed for the first time!
Now that the braces are off, the maintenance portion of your treatment begins. There are multiple elements to maintaining your new smile, including the following:
Retainers
After your braces come off, you’ll have to wear a retainer either full time or part time for a year, and then intermittently thereafter. This part of treatment is just as important as your braces, as it allows your teeth to settle into their new positions, and become firmly set in place. If you don’t wear your retainer as prescribed, there’s a risk that your teeth will shift and become misaligned again.
Regular Dental Check Ups
Going to the dentist on a regular basis is of course integral to maintaining a healthy smile, for orthodontics patients and everybody else, too! Following your orthodontic treatment, you’ll have to continue seeing your dentist on a regular basis, and visiting your orthodontist regularly too, so that we can monitor your smile and make sure excellent results are maintained.
Good Oral Hygiene
Keep your new smile healthy by continuing the rigorous oral hygiene routine you get into while you were wearing your braces! Of course, you don’t have to spend all the additional time cleaning the braces themselves, but the habits your developed of being extra thorough when you had your braces should continue now.
Whitening
Once orthodontic treatment is complete, many patients notice a difference in the colour of their teeth in general, and the spots where their brackets were attached. To even out the colour and add the finishing touch to their new smiles, many orthodontics patients consider having their teeth whitened.