When it comes to straightening teeth, closing gaps, fixing overbites or correcting under-bites, metal braces are simple, effective and produce fantastic results. However, many patients really don’t know what to expect from orthodontic treatment, or what the differences are in the options they may have to choose from.

If you are considering having orthodontic treatments and are unsure about what to expect, and what the overall treatment process will be like, then this article will provide clarity and insights in to what the experience of having braces will mean for you.

There are many reasons that people choose to undergo orthodontic treatment, and there are also some instances where they may be required for specific medical or dental health concerns. Let’s take a look at some of the most common reasons that patients get braces.

Need Braces

The most common reasons that people get braces is to straighten, align, and adjust gaps in their teeth. Braces are used to alter the position and alignment of teeth within the jaw, gradually closing gaps that are too big and repositioning teeth that may be too close together or crowded.

Braces are also commonly used to correct overbites or under-bites. These conditions result in the top and bottom jaws not aligning when biting down, which can have effects on speech and potentially result in discomfort when chewing.

For young patients whose teeth are growing in to spaces that are too small, braces can be used to open up the areas where new teeth are growing in. The purpose of this is to avoid more serious tooth alignment problems in the future once the full set of adult teeth are in place.

Standard Metal Braces

While it may seem at first glance that there’s not a lot of difference from one set of metal braces to the next, the reality is that each set is heavily customized for each patient in order to achieve the best possible results for their particular case. Let’s take a closer look at the different types of metal braces that may be recommended for you.

These are the most common type of braces that you are likely familiar with and are easily recognizable. Metal braces consist of just a few main components, namely the brackets, bands, wires, ligatures, and elastics.

Fast Braces

Although very similar in visual appearance to standard metal braces, Fast Braces (also known as Accelerated Braces), are specially engineered and are used in conjunction with additional therapeutic procedures to perform the desired orthodontic adjustments in a shorter timeframe.

Fast braces use a unique type of bracket and wire that works along with oral phototherapy and subsonic wave treatments that encourage greater ease and speed of movement of the teeth within the jaw and gum tissue. Patients that opt for fast braces typically experience a treatment timeframe that is about half of that needed with a traditional set of braces and orthodontic treatment approach.