Congratulations!
You have officially graduated from regular Orthodontic visits at Booth Orthodontics.
Guidelines to make your smile last a lifetime:
- Retainers are for life. Teeth continue to shift throughout your life due to clenching, grinding, jaw growth, changes in bone and gum tissue, and pressures from facial muscles. To prevent shifting retainers must be worn for life.
- Wear removable retainers enough to keep them fitting passively. After 6 months of night time wear you may be able to reduce the number of nights you need to wear your retainer as long as you are able to maintain a passive fit (ie no significant pressure or pain when you put your retainers on).
- A tight retainer means teeth are shifting! If your retainer is tight, wear it full time until it is passive again, then you may try to taper back wear to nights only as long as the retainer fit remains passive.
- Cleaning your retainer: Clean your retainers each morning with warm water or mouthwash. Do not use toothpaste on clear plastic retainers.
Used monthly, Denture Cleaner tablets (Ex: Efferdent or generic brands), in room temperature water do an excellent job of deep cleaning your retainers.
- For patients with bonded retainers: If the wire feels loose, call the office, and we will schedule an appointment to re-attach the bonded retainer. If the wire comes off completely save the wire and bring it with you for your repair appointment.
- Retainers are like contact lenses, eye glasses, shoes, or anything that is worn routinely - they may eventually wear out. Broken or lost retainers can be replaced for a fee.
- Wisdom teeth: If the third molars (wisdom teeth) have not yet been removed, please continue to have your general dentist evaluate them and determine the timing, and possible future need for their removal. Your final panoramic x-ray has already been sent to your dentist.