Parts Of Braces
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Archwire: The metal wire that acts as a track
to guide your teeth along as they move. It is changed periodically throughout treatment
as your teeth move to their new positions.
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Appliances: Any fixed or removable device, designed
to move the teeth, change the position of the jaw or hold the teeth in their finished
positions after braces are removed.
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Braces: A word commonly used to describe a fixed
orthodontic appliance, usually comprising of brackets, bands and wires. The diagram
below illustrates and names each part of a typical set of braces.
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A. Ligature: The archwire is held to each bracket
with a ligature, which can be either a tiny elastic or a twisted wire.
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B. Archwire: The archwire is tied to all of
the brackets and creates force to move teeth into proper alignment.
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C. Brackets: Brackets are directly bonded on
the teeth and hold the archwire in place.
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D. Metal Band: The band is the cemented ring
of metal which wraps around the tooth.
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E. Bracket Hooks: The bracket or band extensions
that are used for the attachment of rubber bands.
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Bond: The seal created by orthodontic cement
that holds your appliances in place.
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Buccal Tube: A small metal part of the bracket
welded to the cheek side of the molar band. The tube may hold an archwire, lip bumper,
headgear, facebow or other appliances an orthodontist may use to move the teeth.
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Coil Spring: A spring that fits between your
brackets and over your archwire to open space between your teeth.
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Elastic (Rubber Band): A small rubber band that
is hooked between different points on your appliance to provide pressure to move
your teeth to their new position. Use rubber bands as instructed and remember that
the rubber bands work far more efficiently if they're worn as prescribed.
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Elastic Tie: The tiny rubber band that fits
around your bracket to hold the archwire in place. They come in a variety of colors.
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Functional Appliances: Appliances that utilize
the muscle action produced when speaking, eating and swallowing to produce force
to move the teeth and align the jaws. They are also known with names such as orthopedic
corrector, activator, bionator, Frankel, Herbst or twin block appliances.
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Headgear: Headgear uses an external wire apparatus
known as a facebow to gently guide the growth of your face and jaw by moving your
teeth into proper position. The force is applied to the facebow by a spring-loaded
neck strap or head strap. The straps have a safety release that disconnects if the
facebow is pulled or snagged. Headgear is used to treat patients whose teeth are
in an 'overbite,' with the upper jaw forward of the lower jaw or an 'underbite,'
with the lower jaw forward of the upper jaw. Headgear gently pulls on your teeth
to restrict further forward growth of your upper teeth and jaw.
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Headgear Tube: A round, hollow attachment on
your back bands. The inner bow of your headgear fits into it.
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Hook: A welded or removable arm to which elastics
are attached.
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Herbst Appliance: This appliance is used to
move the lower jaw forward. It can be fixed or removable. When it is fixed, it is
cemented to teeth in one or both arches using stainless steel crowns. An expansion
screw may be used simultaneously to widen the upper jaw.
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Lip Bumper: A lip bumper is an archwire attached
to a molded piece of plastic. The lip bumper holds back the molars on your lower
jaw to provide more space for your other teeth.
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Mouthguard: A device that protects your mouth
from injury when you participate in sports or rigorous activities.
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Nightguard: A removable appliance worn at night
to minimize the damage or wear in individuals with the habit of clenching or grinding
teeth during sleep.
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Palatal Expander: A device that makes your upper
jaw wider. The palatal expander "expands" (or widens) your upper jaw by
putting gentle pressure on your upper molars each time an adjustment is made. Your
orthodontist will instruct you about when and how to adjust your expander. When
you achieve the desired expansion, you will wear the appliance for several months
to solidify the expansion and to prevent regression.
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Retainer: An appliance that is worn after your
braces are removed, the retainer attaches to your upper and/or lower teeth to hold
them in place.Retainers are removable or fixed.
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Removable Appliance: An orthodontic appliance
that can be removed from the mouth by the patient. Removable appliances are used
to move teeth or to align jaws.
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Safety Strap: The safety strap prevents the
facebow of the headgear from coming loose and causing injury.
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Serial Extraction: Selective or guided removal
of certain primary (baby) teeth and/or permanent teeth over a period of time to
create room for permanent teeth.
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Space Maintainer: A fixed appliance used to
hold space for an unerupted permanent tooth after a primary (baby) tooth has been
lost prematurely, due to accident or decay.
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Separator or Spacer: A small rubber ring that
creates space between your teeth before the bands are attached. Separators are little
rubber bands that may be placed between your posterior teeth to push them apart
so that orthodontic bands may be placed during your next appointment which will
be after 2-3 days. The separators are removed before we place the bands.
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Tongue Crib: A fixed appliance used to help
a patient stop habits or undesirable tongue forces exerted on the teeth and bone
that supports the teeth.
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Tongue Thrust: An individual's tongue pushes
against the teeth when swallowing. Forces generated by the tongue can move the teeth
and bone and may lead to an anterior or posterior open bite.
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Tie Wire: A fine wire that is twisted around
your bracket to hold the archwire in place.
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Wax : Wax is placed on the brackets or archwires
if they irritate the lips or cheeks.
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