Orthodontic work has long been associated with younger people; this is particularly true in the UK because of the way NHS and orthodontic funding is structured, with a substantial difference in child dental care costs compared to adult costs. But there are many people who missed their window to receive orthodontic care earlier in life, with many now assuming that their dental misalignments are now permanent or for some reason untreatable. This simply is not true; orthodontic treatment is effective as soon as adult teeth are present and as long as any teeth are present! It is not dependent upon age and can be started at any time, depending on the health of the individual.
Adult orthodontic patients
Most dental clinics and orthodontists are thrilled to see the growth in adults engaging in orthodontic care. But with this new cohort comes new challenges; adult patients are different to younger ones who have significantly fewer responsibilities to consider when it comes to engaging in health care. Adult patients cannot risk disruption in their professional image when they take part in public speaking, important business meetings and engaging with clients. And so, few want to wear metal braces.
Low impact and convenient orthodontics
This is the greatest priority in modern orthodontic treatment; to maximise the convenience of an aligner or brace and minimise the effect on the patient’s appearance. If a patient has to choose between extending their treatment by several months or wearing a more obvious orthodontic tool, they will lean towards the less aesthetically disrupting option like Invisible braces Clapham.
Clear aligners as a brace alternative
This has led to clear aligners like Invisalign gaining traction. They have the advantage of being convenient to use and removable, making them easy to clean. Translucent and therefore difficult to notice in everyday life, as well as effective when it comes to the most aesthetically important front teeth, they are ideal for many people.
Clearfast or Cfast braces
C-fast braces could be best described as a minimalistic viable brace; they have an extremely thin archwire made out of a strong titanium alloy; each of the brackets is a translucent plastic square rather than a metal one, making them harder to spot. The drawback is that they are less strong and robust than the standard traditional metal brace. This makes them not only easier to break, but also less capable of the heavy lifting required to move molars.
They can be an excellent option when the alignment is too complex for a clear aligner, but still does not quite require a standard brace.
The Incognito lingual brace
Lingual braces are an interesting way around the problem of how to have all of the utility of a full metal brace without any of its visual impact. Mount the brackets on the inside of the teeth!
It sounds so simple but it creates a set of challenges; the brackets extend out from the teeth and are attached to an archwire connecting them. When this is on the inside of the teeth, it can cause disruption to pronunciation and issues with eating. This means that braces are required to be extremely slender. The solution is to engineer each one to perfectly cup its tooth, making lingual braces relatively expensive due to the quantity of work required to manufacture them.