Get a Fix on Your Smile with a Fixed Retainer
Photo by Yingchou Han on Unsplash
When you finish your modern orthodontic treatment, we recommend retainers. Sometimes we recommend a removable one, like the kind that looks like clear aligners (Essix), or sometimes one with a pink acrylic palate and a wire (Hawley). In some cases, however, we might recommend a fixed retainer, which attaches to the back of your teeth and stays there.
Let’s look at what a fixed retainer is, why we use them, and what you should do to ensure they can do what they need to for your smile.
What Are Fixed Retainers?
Fixed retainers have been around since the 1970s. These appliances were made of a wire bonded (or glued) to your teeth, typically the front four to six bottom ones. More recently, fixed retainers have multi-stranded wires affixed to the back of the bottom teeth. The idea is that it will hold the teeth in place after treatment when teeth are apt to try to move back to where they were.
Fixed retainers are growing in popularity, too. In 2002, a study determined that around a third of orthodontists used a fixed retainer on the lower teeth. However, by 2011, that number had jumped to 42 percent.
Fixed retainers are called a few different things. People might call them Permanent retainers, bonded retainers, or lingual wires (not to be confused with lingual braces).
Some people have fixed retainers for the rest of their lives. Some don’t. Again, what happens in your case will depend on your case and what we think will keep your teeth in long-term alignment. Fixed retainers can last as long as 20 years if you take care of them.
Why Do We Recommend a Fixed Retainer?
Sometimes we recommend these to prevent that movement. Other times we recommend them because we are not sure you will remember to wear a removable one. Many times we recommend both a removable and a fixed. It all depends on your case and what we think will keep your teeth in the alignment we worked so hard to achieve.
Here are a few other reasons your case might require fixed retainers:
If you had severe rotations or crowding with the lower incisors
If we changed the total amount of space between the lower inter-canine teeth
If we had surgery on any of the lower incisors to fix your smile
If we had mild crowding in the lower incisors that we fixed without extracting any teeth
If there was a deep overbite, we treated
If a gap between your front two teeth on the top or bottom were closed, or if gaps between any other front teeth were closed
If we extracted teeth for your case, or you experienced a loss of teeth before treatment
The Benefits and Drawbacks of Fixed Retainers
Besides keeping your teeth from shifting back where they were, there are a few other benefits of a fixed retainer:
They don’t require you to remember to put them in and out when you eat.
They are hard to lose because we bond them to your teeth.
They are also hard to break for the same reason.
No one will see it because it is in the back of your teeth.
It doesn’t affect your speech.
Some of the drawbacks can be:
It takes a while to get it bonded to the teeth, especially compared to what is required of you in the chair to get a removable retainer.
It rubs on your tongue at first, which can be uncomfortable (but eventually, you won’t notice it anymore).
You have to keep it clean and keep the gums around it clean, or you can get tooth decay or gum disease forming around it.
Flossing can be a challenge with one of these.
How to Take Care of Your Fixed Retainer
There are a few things we recommend you do to take care of your fixed retainer. First, you should brush all around the retainer from different angles. However, be gentle with the pressure you apply; vigorous or aggressive brush strokes can break the wire or detach the adhesive we use to affix it there. Detachment of the fixed retainer is our most common problem with these appliances.
We also recommend using a floss threader or a water flosser, which will help you get into the tight spaces on top of and below the retainer wire. Whatever you decide to do to floss, make sure you do. These small spaces are where bacteria thrive and cause problems in your teeth and gums.
It’s also a good idea to avoid eating seeds and hard foods that can get stuck in or break your retainer. About half of the fractured fixed retainers happen because our patients are eating hard foods they probably shouldn’t.
One of the biggest concerns about using a fixed retainer is its negative effect on the tissues in the oral cavity. Therefore, you must keep it clean and see your regular dentist every six months to ensure that you don’t have plaque building up around your retainer. Plaque buildup and bacteria that gathers there can lead to cavities and gum disease if left untreated.
Retainers are the final but essential part of fixing your smile. We may suggest that you have a fixed retainer to keep your teeth from shifting. If so, now you know why and what you can do to keep it working.
To schedule your free consultation today, call Bloom SMILE STUDIO office in GARDEN GROVE at 714-430-8454.
Bloom SMILE STUDIO in GARDEN GROVE has a long history of improving our patient’s smiles. We provide modern orthodontic treatments delivered with old-fashioned excellence in patient experience. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Sources:
Permanent Retainers: Pros, Cons, Costs, and Vs. Removable (2023). Available at: https://www.healthline.com/health/permanent-retainer#brush-and-floss (Accessed: 18 January 2023).
What to Know About Permanent Retainers (2023). Available at: https://www.webmd.com/oral-health/what-to-know-about-permanent-retainers (Accessed: 18 January 2023).
Kartal Y, Kaya B. Fixed Orthodontic Retainers: A Review. Turk J Orthod. 2019;32(2):110-114. doi:10.5152/TurkJOrthod.2019.18080