At Dental One Care, many patients question why they have to wear braces for so long. We understand that you may want to get your braces on and off as quickly as possible. In this article, we discuss why it is so important to follow the orthodontic treatment your Sterling Heights dentist has planned. Don’t forget to look at the big picture here. Your smile and happiness mean a lot to us.
Why Braces Stay on for Long
Your teeth are firmly embedded in the jaw. In order to shift your teeth to the right position, a great deal of pressure is required. However, the needed pressure happens gradually so that the associated dental structures (periodontal ligaments, jaw, gums, and teeth) aren’t adversely affected.
Dr. Fardi Farhat explains that orthodontic treatment at Dental One Care in Sterling Heights is therefore designed to move teeth to their new positions slowly and safely. This way, the existing orthodontic problem, such as misaligned teeth, can be resolved without creating additional problems that could be hard to fix.
The treatment process may outwardly appear to belong, but it is designed in this way to keep you safe.
Can the Braces Be Removed Once the Teeth Are Straight?
While getting a beautiful smile may have been your objective in seeing an orthodontist in Sterling Heights MI, our team at Dental One Care goes a step further and aims at giving you a healthy and beautiful smile.
It is true that your teeth can look straight in a few months after getting braces. However, Dr. Fardi Farhat, a dentist in Sterling Heights, says that moving the teeth so that they look aligned is just one part of the treatment.
The second and most important part involves giving bone tissue a chance to grow and harden around the teeth that are in new positions.
It works like this; jawbone is constantly resorbing and growing. As the teeth move to their new positions, the jawbone in the old positions resorbs. At the same time, the jawbone grows in the new locations of the teeth.
As the new bone matter is deposited around the new positions of your teeth, several months have to elapse before that bone tissue hardens and holds the teeth in place. The estimated time that you are told that you will have braces for includes this time required to allow the bone tissue to harden.
What Determines How Long Your Braces Are On?
The specific duration taken during this hardening process varies from one person to another, and it also depends on several factors. For example, Dr. Tim Lyons at Lyons Orthodontics in El Dorado Hills points out that teens need a shorter time because they are still experiencing rapid growth, unlike adults whose growth spurts have come to an end.
So, we do not recommend removing the braces the moment your teeth look straight. Doing so can result in the teeth moving back to their old positions since the bone tissue around them is still soft and cannot prevent the teeth from moving as you bite, chew, or speak.
How to Avoid Prolonging the Treatment Time
Dr. Fardi Farhat, an orthodontist in Sterling Heights MI, says that some patients have braces for much longer than the estimated duration due to several factors. Some of those reasons are avoidable. Keep the following in mind to prevent having to wear braces for longer than you should.
Maintain Oral Hygiene
Brushing and flossing properly is important if you wear braces because plaque can easily trigger gum disease and other dental problems that could delay your orthodontic treatment in Sterling Heights, MI. For example, gum disease can cause your gums to swell and become red. When this happens, your dentist in Sterling Heights may be unable to access the wires and brackets in order to adjust them during a scheduled visit. That planned adjustment willM have to wait until the inflammation and gum disease has been managed. This could add a month or more to your treatment time.
Don’t Miss Appointments with Your Sterling Heights Dentist
We have already mentioned that the pressure exerted is gradual to move your teeth to their new positions. That is why your treatment plan has several orthodontist appointments spread out over several months. At each appointment, Dr. Fardi Farhat will examine you to establish how your treatment is progressing. Then, he adjusts the pressure exerted by the archwires on your braces. If you miss any of these scheduled appointments, you will have prevented your treatment from progressing to the next phase. This ultimately means an extension to the treatment duration.
Avoid this unnecessary delay to your treatment. Make sure you attend all your scheduled appointments.
Comply With the Care Instructions for Your Braces
Additionally, you can also benefit from following the instructions given to you by your orthodontist. For example, Dr. Fardi Farhat often cautions patients with braces to avoid eating hard or sticky candy. These snacks can damage or distort the shape of the brackets and wires on your braces. Hard nuts are equally detrimental. If you don’t adhere to all those instructions, the wires or brackets may break, and this will delay your treatment. Compliance is, therefore, important in ensuring that the braces will come off at the expected time.
The treatment time differs from one person to another. Ask your orthodontist in Sterling Heights MI if you’re on track to get your braces on time. If anything unexpected, such as severe tooth pain, happens during your treatment, contact us at Dental One Care immediately so that a diagnosis and remedy can be implemented in order to keep your orthodontic treatment on track.
