The Real Story of Clear
Braces
In recent years, we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of adults interested in orthodontic treatment. Much of this surge is related to an increased awareness of "Clear Choices" available rather than traditional metal braces. Clear or "invisible" braces have also contributed to this increase in demand. The public is also much more aware of good dental health as a part of our total good health and well being.
Unfortunately, other doctors may not see the world the way the patient does. Rather than choosing what looks great and works well, they may offer what costs least or what works best "in their hands". Again, to be frank how can it work well "in their hands" if they have done little of none of it. So as a consumer, if you have a preference, you might ask questions about how many they have actually finished (not just started) of the kind that you prefer.
 Clear, rather than metal braces have been available for over 30 years, but the first ones were totally clear but were made of a type of plastic and staining was a problem. Later stronger and different composites were used, with less staining, but hey were not really clear. In the 1980's we have the introduction of ceramic brackets. They are very strong and generally do not stain. Three popular brands are Clarity and Transcend, made by 3M Unitek; and Mystique, made by GAC. All of these are high quality and do not stain, but they are NOT totally clear, so if by luck, they match closely the color of your teeth well, they will look good.
Because of the negatives associated with the others, we are usually going to recommend the
Invisalign option OR a TOTALLY CLEAR BRACE that truly "blends in" with any and all teeth. These totally clear brackets cost a little more than the others, but depending on your tooth color, and be well worth it because they do not stain and are totally clear. Popular manufactures include Ortho Technology Inc., Ormco, and American Orthodontics. It has been reported that these are the type of braces actor Tom Cruise had. The final critical factor, that we find other doctors do not do, it to be sure that the ligature that holds the wire also does not stain.
The SELF LIGATION clear bracket is usually REJECTED by the patient, because it has lots of METAL added to the clear bracket to hold the wire in. This DESTROYS the good clear qualities of the product in our opinion! We are very careful to place the wire with ligatures that do not stain Finally, we find that tooth colored wire technology is improving but still need improvement.
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