What are self-ligating braces?

Doctor's Answers 2

Self-ligating braces are a kind of a fixed on braces, the difference between self-ligating braces and traditional braces is how we tie the wire to the bracket itself, so, if you look at traditional braces, we are actually using a small wire or a little rubber, we tie those colourful things to hold the wire to the tooth, the wire is the one that is actually moving the wire in that sense.

A self-ligating brace basically, the bracket is designed to have a locking mechanism that actually locks the wire in place, because of this locking mechanism, there is less friction in the system because when you are tying very tightly to the braces, the braces can't really move well, whereas the self-ligating braces because of the system, there is less friction, between the wires and the brackets, so we can a gentler or a lower level of force to move teeth, because in order for teeth to move we need to take away friction.

In its essence, it is more gentle in terms of force to move teeth with self lifting braces. I generally find that self-ligating braces because of the low level of force it works well for expansion.

Whether I recommend it, it depends, I will say. So again, it boils down to what cases we are dealing with. If you are talking about an extraction case, generally, I don't find a big difference in an extraction case between metal braces or self-ligating braces.

Maybe you can save a few hundred dollars and save and do traditional braces. If you are talking about maybe borderline and can do without taking out teeth and need a little expansion then maybe you can consider self-ligating braces.

If you ask me I would definitely think Invisalign is more comfortable. The patient has a little bit more autogamy in the sense, because every time you change an aligner, there will be a small amount of movement that is prescribed in every aligner, so for example, if you say "oh I am going to have an exam and I do not want any pressure on my teeth", then I just don’t change my aligners for that period of time.

But if you are talking about braces, once you come in and see me, I will need to make some changes and the amount of force I need as compared to aligners are definitely a bit more because we have to provide continuous force during this period of time to allow the teeth to move, in terms of emergency visits, you also expect more emergency visits for braces, because maybe you accidentally eat something hard then you need to get that fixed because that can get a bit irritating or maybe wire poking, the rubbing and ulcers, you tend to see that more in braces patients compare to aligners.

Because aligners are closely adept to your teeth, of course, there is some attachment like these little studs we stick on teeth in order to have a pressure point for the aligner to apply pressure to move your teeth but once you are wearing aligners you won't feel, that attachment as compared to braces. My kids are definitely going for Invisalign, that's for sure.

Similar Questions

What are the benefits of Damon braces as compared to traditional braces?

The purported "benefits" of Damon braces include shorter treatment time, less pain and eliminating the need for extractions. Dentists may like Damon brackets because it is less time-consuming to change wires. The purported benefits are mostly marketing claims that have no real impact on the biomechanics of how teeth move and how an orthodontic case is planned. Your teeth ultimately cannot sense if you are wearing regular brackets or Damon brackets! The UK Advertising Standards Authority passed a ruling on claims by Damon (Ormco) which you can read here.

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Should I wait until after braces treatment to treat my nasolabial lines? (photo)

Thank you for your question. Although braces treatment would not have any impact on your nasolabial lines as the braces are bonded to the teeth and its influence is only on the teeth and its supporting bone, it may be good to assess the lip posture following removal of braces as there may be muscular adaptation following removal of braces which may change the lip posture.

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