Straighten Your Teeth in as Little as Six Months
When teeth aren’t growing straight, a dreaded word often comes to mind: braces.
No one has a positive feel for the word. When we think of braces, we think of painful procedures, costly bills, obtrusive apparatus, and long, long, ever-so-long recovery. In fact, braces are typically installed for anywhere from one to three years!
But what if there was another way. A faster, more affordable, less conspicuous way to straight teeth. That’s exactly what Six Month Smiles® promises.
Six Month Smiles® are a relatively new kind of braces treatment that works exactly as the name describes: In just six months, your lower and front upper teeth are going to be straightened. Even better, Six Month Smiles® rely on clear brackets and nickel-titanium wires that are colored to look like teeth, so they are about as invisible as braces come. Alaska Dental Associates is proud to be one of the few dentists in Anchorage that offers this convenient procedure!
What Makes Someone a Good Candidate for Short Term Braces?
Six Month Smiles® focuses on using low pressure force to correct cosmetic problems to the front teeth. Therefore, it is primarily intended to fix simple cosmetic issues rather than complex problems with your teeth or bite. Some of the conditions that they best treat are intrusions, extrusions, tipping, diastemas, spacing, reverse smile lines, crowding and overlapping teeth, and overbites.
And, as the name implies, they are ideal for people who are looking for a quicker fix to these issues. If your needs aren’t serious, and you’re looking to get them corrected as soon as possible, Six Month Smiles® may be right for you.
Six Month Smiles® – Procedure Overview
For your first visit, our dentist will perform a detailed exam of your gums, teeth, and general oral health to confirm that you’re a suitable candidate for our Six Month Smiles® procedure. The methods may vary, but expect intraoral and facial x-rays. We’ll use this analysis not only to determine if you are a good candidate for the procedure, but also to fabricate tooth models to demonstrate how your braces will fit.
One of the most important distinctions between traditional treatment and Six Month Smiles® is that custom-fabricated trays are used to assure precise positioning of the brackets. The trays are fabricated at a laboratory and are based on the initial teeth models done during your first consultation. The models will be used at to get a precise idea of the tooth movement necessary so that you get the desired effects on your front teeth. At this moment the location of the tooth-colored wires and clear brackets is also determined.
In the following appointment, the brackets and arc wires are then placed. Thanks to a bonding adhesive, our dental professionals will bond the brackets to the enamel surface of your front teeth. When they have properly adhered, we’ll put a custom tray on your teeth to assure that the brackets are properly seated, which can be removed after the brackets are set.
The last step when getting your Six Month Smiles® in Anchorage is to harden the adhesive so that the brackets are secure. For this, we use a high-intensity light. Once the adhesive is hardened, we’ll attach the wires for the best tooth movement and adjust them as needed to give you the best straightening possible.
After the Procedure
After the initial placement of your Six Month Smiles®, you can expect a certain level of tightness, that will end up progressing into soreness around five hours after the appointment. This is due to the tightening effects of the archwires, and we recommend using common pain relievers to manage any discomfort you might feel.
Thankfully, since the Six Month Smiles® procedure uses a lower amount of force that traditional solutions, the soreness will be less than other forms of braces. After the treatment, you’ll require either a permanent retainer or a removable retainer at night so that your teeth don’t relapse.
Maintaining Your Straight Smile
Just like regular braces, you’ll need to come in every four to five weeks so that your archwires can be tightened and adjusted. Thankfully, these appointments are much shorter in length than your initial appointments, lasting only around 15 minutes. Once the treatment is finished (six months on average), the wires and brackets are removed from your mouth.
You will also be required to maintain proper oral hygiene while the braces are installed. Try to brush at least three times a day, and remember to use fluoride mouth rinse so you can help maintain the tooth enamel and structure. Avoid sticky and hard foods, given that they might harm the braces and may break the bond between the brackets and the teeth. Be wary of foods high in acidic content or sugar because they can make oral hygiene considerably more difficult.
Schedule Your Consultation for Six Month Smiles® in Anchorage Today
You don’t have to live with crooked or out of place front teeth, and you don’t have to spend years in braces to get them corrected. Contact our office today to learn if Six Month Smiles® could be right for you.