During your orthodontic treatment, you'll attend adjustment appointments at our office, during which we'll adjust your braces. This is a necessary part of your treatment and should not be put off.
Many people also refer to this as "tightening" the braces. It doesn't sound very pleasant to have your braces ‘tightened’, but fortunately, it’s not as bad as it sounds!
"Tightening" is not a particularly accurate way to describe this procedure. What we’re really doing is adjusting your braces to move your teeth incrementally into the desired position.
This has to be done very slowly over an extended period of time, so you have regular and fairly frequent adjustment appointments, so we can do it bit by bit.
Here’s a basic outline of what we'll do during an adjustment appointment at Guildford Orthodontic Centre:
- First off, the orthodontic assistant will begin by removing your elastics, which hold each bracket to the arch wire.
- Next, the archwire is removed.
- The orthodontist will then examine your teeth and and determine how your treatment is progressing. If any parts of your braces need to be replaced (such as the elastics, or in some cases the archwire), he will do so at this point. If you need something replaced, he will let you know ahead of time.
- Next, your archwire and new elastics will be placed. This may hurt a bit the first time you go through it, but future appointments will be less painful.
- Let your orthodontist know straight away in you notice that the archwire pokes the inside of your cheek, since it’s not supposed to! If it does, the orthodontist or the assistant will shorten it with clippers.
- That’s it!
After the Adjustment Appointment
Immediately after your appointment, you may find that you feel slightly sore. Any discomfort should wear off after a few days, tops. Meanwhile, try icing your face periodically, or using an over-the-counter painkiller to help reduce any discomfort. Try to eat mostly soft foods during this period.
If your archwire starts poking you at some point after your adjustment appointment, come see us again, and we'll clip it back for you.