“Yup, you have one of those old-school retainers,” the dentist remarked.
Her gloved fingers probed the hardware.
“Wow” is never what you want to hear from someone who sees thousands of mouths per year.
Channing Smith // Allure
I’d gotten used to its smooth bulk over the years; I rarely thought about it.
Not five minutes after checking in, I was introduced toOliver, the team’s Chief Anxiety Officer.
(No, really painless, but that’s a story for another day.)
Top: What remained after chiseling away the retainer glue. Bottom: Once the retainer was fully removed.
Reader, I gasped.
In short: the retainer was fucking gross.
My gums were inflamed, the metal caked in what looked like plaque.
Insert middle finger emoji here
(Oliver continued to nap during this crisis.)
And so my investigation into the not-so-permanent retainer began.
For the record, you dont need straight teeth for have a beautiful smile.
My fancy, custom bonded retainer.
What Is a Permanent Retainer?
These can be bonded retainers, like mine, or removable retainers that are typically worn at night.
“Bonding means it’s glued to the back of the teeth.
And nothing lasts forever in the human mouth.
The benefits of bonded retainers
Bonded retainers are common for a reason.
“Retention is a very important part of the orthodontic treatment,” says Dr. Grauer.
“The mouth works like a machine.
“The mouth is composed of three things: teeth, gums, and bones.
When everything fits well, there is no friction, and there’s no wear on the teeth.
The teeth can work forever.
In short: Retainers help keep all this stable by keeping the teeth steady.
And with orthodontics evolving constantly, it’s becoming easier to do so.
We can get much better aging process.
We can put the bracesbehind the teeth; we have Invisalign.
There are so many things that we can do today that we couldn’t do before.”
That said, they’re not a blanket fix for anyone who needs their teeth retained.
“It doesn’t work for everyone.
There are people who can’t tolerate having something in their mouth.
I’ve taken them out for people because they’re so fixated,” says Dr. Huang.
Even patients whobrush and flossdiligently often have no idea there’s invisible damage being done.
“Most people don’t know.
“We used [twisted wire] retainers for 40 years, so now, we are changing.
Then that energy’s released back to your teeth, and that canmove your teethin the long-term.”
Placement is also key, which means your orthodontist installing your retainer with both retention and hygiene in mind.
“It’s so hard.
“If you’re free to’tfloss your retainer, there’s a problem,” she explains.
“Especially as cosmetic dentists, we’re reallyfocused on preventionand educating our patients.
We’re big on having patients be our teammates.
That accumulates a lot of bacteria, which spreads through your entire mouth and could cause periodontal disease.
It’s a bone-eating bacteria,” she says.
Prolonged gum inflammation can lead to bone loss, which then leads to tooth mobility,” he says.
“Prevention is really important to us because we want to catch [the issue] before it happens.
How do I clean a bonded retainer?
“The most obvious thing to consider with permanent lingual wires isoral hygiene.
Some wires, depending on how theyre made, are not easily cleanable,” he explains.
Pricy, absolutely, but it may end up saving you the extra money that intervention would require later.
With Oliver dozing off on my lap once again, she got started.
For context, it normally takes about ten minutes to remove a bonded retainer.
Afterward, I checked out the tiny monster that had been wreaking havoc on my bottom teeth.
It was totally unassuming, and I was relieved to see it tossed in the trash.
Top: What remained after chiseling away the retainer glue.
Bottom: Once the retainer was fully removed.
My fancy, custom bonded retainer.
Two weeks later, my personalized retainer arrived at the office and I returned for its installation.
In under 15 minutes, Dr. Huang had replaced my junked-up twisted wire with the Mazzeratti of retainers.
In conclusion, maybe it’s time to call your orthodonist.
Read more about oral care here:
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