Orthodontists have traditionally placed braces on the teeth one at a time, in a process known as direct bonding. Although this technique is widely practised, a more efficient and comfortable method, known as indirect bonding, is often used at Sable and Pepicelli Orthodontists.
In order to place the braces indirectly, our orthodontic therapist will start by taking impressions of your upper and lower teeth. From these impressions, our laboratory technician creates a set of plaster models. Your orthodontist will then carefully and accurately position the braces on the models, without you even being in the clinic! Once the braces are in place, soft custom trays are placed over the models which allow the braces to then come away from the plaster, within the trays.
On the day that you have your braces fitted (usually one to two weeks after the impressions), our orthodontic therapist will clean and prepare your teeth. Once the teeth are ready, the orthodontist will fit the custom trays containing all of the braces, and then set the glue. After the glue is set, the custom trays will be removed, and your braces will be on! Lastly, you will have your upper and lower wires inserted, and then you will be ready to begin your orthodontic journey!
Written by Sher Fong.