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After you’ve finished your treatment with Houston braces or Invisalign, your South Houston dentist will next prescribe the use of retainers to prevent your teeth from shifting back to their previous location. At first, they will likely need to be worn 24/7, but after your teeth have settled, they can be worn only while you sleep. Two of the most common types of retainers used by patients after their dental braces come off are the Hawley retainer and clear retainers. Both are effective designs whose costs are roughly the same, with the final price depending on the specific case. As you will see below, each type of retainer has its pros and cons. It’s best to consult with your South Houston dentist which is best for your specific needs once you’ve completed your Houston braces treatment.

Why A South Houston Dentist Would Recommend a Hawley Retainer

The Hawley retainer, being an older type that has been in common use for a long time, is easily recognizable by the single metal wire that runs across the front of the patient’s teeth when worn. That metal wire is attached to a plastic or acrylic piece that is custom molded to fit either the roof of your mouth or along the bottom of your lower teeth. This design allows your upper and lower teeth to naturally come into contact with one another. You can also ask your South Houston dentist to make slight adjustments to the fit of a Hawley retainer should the need arise. A Hawley retainer can last for years with proper care, and can even be repaired when damaged. 

Cons of Wearing a Hawley Retainer After Houston Braces

The potential disadvantages of the Hawley retainer include an adjustment period with the exposed wire component, as it may irritate your inner cheeks and lips at the beginning. The wire also makes it more noticeable than clear retainers. Lastly, Hawley retainers may affect your ability to speak, especially in the beginning. However, these are all short-term concerns.

Why A South Houston Dentist Would Recommend a Clear Retainer

Clear plastic retainers, in contrast, are almost invisible. They are molded to fit the exact new position of your teeth. Because of their perfect fit, clear retainers are less bulky and therefore less likely to affect how you speak. These two advantages make them more likely to be worn consistently by patients, in turn improving the clear retainer’s overall effectiveness.

Cons of Wearing a Hawley Retainer After Houston Braces

However, clear retainers do come with their own disadvantages. First of all, because they are worn over the teeth, they prevent your top and bottom teeth from having natural contact with one another. Further, should the need arise, your South Houston dentist cannot realign or readjust your clear retainers. They also cannot be repaired. If their fit is uncomfortable or if they become damaged in any way, they will need to be replaced entirely. Another thing to consider is that as you use them, clear retainers may become discolored over time, making them more visible to other people. Another thing to look out for is that their closed design might trap liquids and food particles against your teeth, which increases the risk of forming cavities. However, if you take proper care of your clear retainers, most of these issues can be avoided.

Houston Braces and Retainers From the South Houston Dentist You Can Rely On

At Centra Dental, we’re challenging the idea that visits to your South Houston dentist are something to dread. Our staff is dedicated to making each appointment a relaxing and stress-free occasion. We also accept most PDP, DPPO, and PPO dental insurance plans, as well as CHIP and both Adult and Children's Medicaid, making us your trusted source for affordable dental braces and retainers. Contact us today and let’s book an appointment at your next earliest convenience!

Houston braces can be a cumbersome and uncomfortable experience. While our staff at Centra Dental try our utmost to ensure that your visits and treatments with us are as pleasant and stress-free as possible, the truth is that rubber bands may be a necessary part of a patient’s treatment. It makes sense that patients with braces would like to minimize the number of parts and components in their mouth that they need to take care of and clean. That’s why one of the most common questions asked by Houston braces patients of their South Houston family dentist is whether or not they need rubber bands, also sometimes called elastics, installed on their braces. The short answer is: It depends.

Why Do Houston Braces Have Rubber Bands Anyway?

Houston braces work through the firm and constant application of pressure on your teeth and jaw to correct misalignments, straighten crooked teeth, and resolve tooth crowding issues. Most of the work is done through wires and brackets, but sometimes, these are not enough. Your South Houston dentist must resort to adding strategically located rubber bands among your braces in order to add a little more force and pressure in the right direction. This additional hardware is understandably a source of discomfort and inconvenience to patients, as these rubber bands can make eating more difficult and make cleaning their braces more complicated. However, South Houston pediatric dentistry experts say that the discomfort from braces and rubber bands tends to go away within 2-3 days, and while cleaning braces will always be tedious, they will teach patients to better clean and care for their teeth.

When Are Rubber Bands Not Needed With Houston Braces

In general, rubber bands are employed in Houston braces to correct misaligned jaw conditions such as overbite, underbite, open bite, and crossbite. If you do not suffer from any of these conditions, you may not need rubber bands at all on your braces. Additionally, even in the case that you do need rubber bands installed on your braces, your Houston family dentist may determine that they only need to be part of your treatment for only a few months of the one to two years of the total time that you are wearing braces.

Get Your Houston Braces Stress-Free From the South Houston Family Dentist You Can Trust

At Centra Dental, we’re fighting the perception of visits to your South Houston Dentist being occasions of fear and dread. Our staff puts in the utmost effort to make each visit a relaxing and productive affair. We also accept most PDP, DPPO, and PPO dental insurance plans, as well as CHIP and both Adult and Children's Medicaid, making us your trusted source for affordable braces. Give us a call and let’s schedule an appointment at your earliest convenience!

Dental braces are used by your South Houston Dentist to align and straighten teeth primarily to correct a patient’s bite to treat conditions such as crowded teeth, underbite, overbite, and other jaw and teeth alignment issues. However, Houston braces can also be used to aesthetically improve a patient’s smile. Here in Centra Dental, we take pride in fostering open communication with our patients so we can educate them on how to best take care of their teeth. In this article, our South Houston family dentist will discuss the differences between ceramic braces and metal braces so that our patients can decide for themselves which is best suited for their needs.

Traditional South Houston Metal Braces

Metal dental braces are an effective and affordable way of correcting even the most severe of bite issues. Traditional Houston braces are composed of three parts: metal brackets, metal wire, and elastic ties. Metal brackets are glued by your South Houston Dentist to your front teeth with dental cement. An elastic tie anchors each metal bracket to the arch wire. The constant pressure coming from the interaction of the metal brackets and the arch wire slowly moves the teeth to the desired position.

Ceramic South Houston Braces

Ceramic dental braces function pretty much like a traditional metal brace but have gained some advancements in subtlety. We all know that traditional South Houston metal braces are quite noticeable because of its heft and dark gray metal color. Ceramic braces are recommended by your South Houston family dentist to patients who want a more discreet dental brace. Ceramic dental braces use tooth-colored ceramic brackets that blend with your teeth. These ceramic brackets are also designed to attach with the arch wire directly thus removing the need for elastic ties. Ceramic Houston braces also use an arch wire but it is usually lightly colored (silver or frosted) which further decreases its visibility.

Pros and Cons: Metal Braces vs Ceramic South Houston Dentist

Here in Centra Dental, we believe that everyone deserves to have a smile they are proud to wear. That is why we offer a variety of dental braces that our patients can choose from based on their needs and budget. In the list below, our South Houston Dentist will evaluate both metal and ceramic braces on different categories:

• Cost - Traditional metal braces are more affordable than ceramic South Houston braces.
• Aesthetically pleasing - Ceramic braces are less noticeable than metal dental braces and as such are preferred by patients who put a premium on visual appearance.
• Major bite issues - Traditional metal braces are sturdier than ceramic dental braces and and as such are recommended for correcting major teeth and jaw alignment issues. While ceramic braces are suitable for most patients, extreme cases where major movements of the teeth are involved would require dental braces.

Work with your Trusted South Houston Dentist for a Stress-Free Experience

One of our priorities here in Centra Dental is ensuring a pleasant and stress-free experience for the whole family. The facility has free wi-fi and family-friendly movies are being shown in the lobby and examination rooms so mom and dad can relax while their kids are being treated. We have also implemented measures to surgically clean circulating indoor air for the benefit of our patients and staff. Call us now to schedule an appointment.

If you or your child have teeth that are crooked or misaligned, then you’re probably going to get South Houston braces in the near future. If you talk with your South Houston family dentist, you’ll find that you are going to have options to choose from, usually between ceramic braces or Invisalign treatment. Both options are effective at giving you or your child a straight and perfect smile, but one of them might be a better choice for you than the other. Let’s dive into the differences between them.

Ceramic South Houston Braces vs. Invisalign: Speed and Effectiveness

In general, ceramic braces will take between 18-24 months to do the job, while Invisalign treatment will take only an average of 12 months to complete. The trade-off of Invisalign’s faster results is that they will require more regular visits to your South Houston family dentist as retainers are swapped out at a quick pace. In contrast, ceramic braces will also require adjustments, but not as often as Invisalign. When it comes to effectiveness, both will perform equally well at fixing crooked or misaligned teeth. However, ceramic South Houston braces may be more applicable over a wider range of cases, which is why, depending on your specific case, South Houston pediatric dentistry experts may recommend them over Invisalign. 

Living With South Houston Braces: Ceramic Braces vs Invisalign

Your choice of ceramic braces or Invisalign will also impact your lifestyle during the duration of the treatment. This is another factor to discuss with your South Houston family dentist. Invisalign retainers can be removed during meals and for cleaning separately from the patient’s teeth. This makes them easier to live with than ceramic South Houston braces. Ceramic braces can require special brushes to keep clean, and also require the patient to abstain from sticky foods that may gunk them up. For this reason, South Houston Pediatric dentistry experts may recommend Invisalign for younger patients. Another factor to consider is the difference in cost. In general, ceramic braces will cost less than Invisalign treatment.

Get Your South Houston Braces From a Stress-Free and Pleasant South Houston Family Dentist

Whether you pick ceramic braces or Invisalign, our team at Centra Dental is committed to making your visits as stress-free and as pleasant as possible. Our goal is to be as helpful and caring as we can to each of our patients. Centra Dental accepts most PDP, DPPO, and PPO dental insurance plans, as well as CHIP and both Adult and Children's Medicaid, allowing us to be your trusted source for affordable braces. Get in touch with us and make an appointment to experience the Centra Dental difference!