Many
people who go through orthodontic treatment are required to wear elastics or
rubber bands toward the end of their braces.
Elastics are used to help correct a patient's bite into an ideal
position. Whether you are in braces or
Invisalign, the importance of elastics is essential.
At
our Akron orthodontic office, Dr. Barnett and Team work tirelessly on patient
education to make this point about cooperation clear. Without a patient doing the work, the end
will never be in sight.
There
are different circumstances that could require the use of elastics; such as, an
overbite, an underbite, or a crossbite.
Elastics are connected directly onto the brackets on a specialized hook
designed to secure the rubber band in place.
They connect from top to bottom.
The pull of the rubber bands helps to move the teeth into the correct
positions by stimulating the cells in the bone surrounding the teeth;
therefore, the teeth then shift into the new correct position. This is only successful when the elastics are
worn full time, about 21-22 hours a day.
Part time cooperation will never make progress. As the bone begins the
process of changing but when not worn consistently, it always has to “begin
again.” Thus no progress is made.
In
today’s busy times, we find more and more people struggling with
cooperation. Whether it is forgetting
after a meal to replace them, sports or activities that interfere, or just the
"annoyance" of wearing rubber bands in general, some people just
can't seem to commit. Patients think
that "doubling-up" on elastics will suffice; some will wear two
elastics on each side at bed time and wear nothing during the day. As brilliant as this seems, it does not
work. The teeth need constant light
pressure in order to move.
Commonly we hear kids say they forget
to put them in after lunch. If you
struggle with this, try setting an alarm/reminder on your cell phone to go off
after lunch. Another idea is to keep a bag of elastics as a bookmark in your
textbook for the first class after lunch. You can also try placing the rubber bands
on a finger while snacking.
If you really cannot commit to the
cooperation, talk with your orthodontist about a non-compliant approach to bite
correction. We use a lot of “fixed”
appliances to correct bites. Ultimately
though, each individual patient is in charge of his or her future. Take some ownership to the process and
achieve that awesome result!
