Metal braces or traditional braces are dental braces that are used to rectify issues of the teeth crooked
teeth, crowded teeth, misaligned bite and jaw problems. The standard traditional metal braces consist of
three main components:
These are made of metal, usually high quality stainless steel or titanium. Each bracket is attached
to the surface of the each tooth with an adhesive that will hold them in place.
These are thin metal wires that are used to connecting each bracket together. Archwires also help
to put pressure on the teeth in order to stay in place.
These are the bands usually made of rubber or elastic that is used to hold the archwires to the
metal brackets.
These are the most common of the dental braces and the technological advances in this field have made
metal braces sleeker, smaller and have also increased the comfortability level. Nowadays, the metal braces
come with archwires that are activated by heat to help in the teeth to move quickly and cause lesser pain
compared to the past.
The metal braces after being placed on your teeth, applies steady pressure on your teeth and the force of
this pressure helps in aligning the teeth into their proper places. The constant pressure is maintained by
periodical tightening of the archwires by the orthodontist.
The different advantages of using metal braces when compared to rest of the dental braces available in the
market today are:
The metal braces have a major disadvantage of being more noticeable when compared to the newer dental braces that are available in the present market. The companies that manufacture metal braces have come
up with colorful metal brackets and elastic bands to give the traditional braces a more visually appealing
makeover.
The orthodontist might prescribe treatments for their patients in a phased manner.
The orthodontist might suggest early intervention treatment for patients, usually children before
they have all their permanent teeth. This is aimed at getting the issues corrected at an early stage.
The skeletal structure will be corrected initially to make the next phase of treatment more
effective.
This is the active phase of the treatment where the actual braces are used to align and straighten
the teeth.
The metal braces have to be taken care of properly for making it comfortable to use.
Authored By Dr Sanjay N - Orthodontics & Dentofacial Orthopaedics, Bangalore