Are there any special concerns when wearing braces?
First important: maintain oral hygiene!
If you do not pay attention to oral hygiene during orthodontic treatment, it is easy to cause tooth decay and gingivitis. If you do not pay attention to oral hygiene, you may even suffer from periodontal disease. Because food debris builds up on your teeth, a large number of bacteria can grow, and the bacteria break down to produce acidic substances that can lead to tooth demineralization and caries, as well as gum hyperplasia or recession. Orthodontic treatment may be interrupted if a dentist finds a patient with poor oral hygiene at a follow-up visit, jeopardizing the health of the periodontal tissue. Therefore, maintaining oral hygiene is very important!
The second most important: pay attention to your diet
In the process of orthodontic treatment, diet is very noteworthy, especially when eating, chew slowly and avoid eating hard or overcooked foods, such as hard candy, rusks, beef jerky, small walnuts, plums, Peanuts, bones, sugar cane, apples, pears, gummies, etc., all of which can cause damage to the metal fixture or fall off the bracket, and also easily deform the archwire, thereby affecting the therapeutic effect.
Third Important: Pay Attention to Feelings
It is normal to have mild reactive pain in the teeth or to feel weak when chewing after wearing the appliance and after each follow-up visit. Generally, these uncomfortable symptoms resolve or disappear after 3 to 5 days. If the pain persists for 3 to 5 days, does not relieve but worsens, or if other conditions occur, you should contact your doctor for examination in time.
Fourth important: pay attention to follow-up
During orthodontic treatment, whether it is a metal fixed appliance or an invisible appliance, it is necessary to visit regularly and insist on wearing it. Because teeth move so slowly, orthodontic treatment generally takes a long time. This is a long process. If you decide to have orthodontic treatment, you must be patient enough to achieve perfect straightening. In the process of straightening, the teeth are actually moving constantly every day, but it is difficult for us to detect it with the naked eye. After moving for a period of time and a certain distance, the corrective force applied to the archwire decreases or disappears completely. At this time, you must pay attention to visiting the clinic in time for regular follow-up visits, and the dentist will make adjustments until the tooth deformity is completely corrected. Usually, follow-up visits are every 4 to 6 weeks. Without regular or long-term follow-up, teeth straightening can get out of control, with abnormal tooth movement or failure of treatment.
