Brace yourself: it’s best to stay wired up for life, say dentists

IT WILL make most youngsters recoil in horror, but dental experts are now advising that braces be worn for life to prevent teeth moving out of alignment once they have been straightened.

The British Orthodontic Society (BOS) has launched a new campaign to encourage patients to continue wearing wires at night even when their teeth have been fixed.

It comes after research found that 70 per cent of people who had braces need treatment again after 10 years.

The “Hold That Smile” campaign is also backed by the British Dental Association (BDA) and the Faculty of Dental Practice UK (FGDP).

Simon Littlewood, a consultant orthodontist at St Luke’s Hospital, Bradford, and the BOS spokesman on retention, said: “If you don’t wear your retainers, we now know the teeth will go crooked again and all that hard work will be lost.

“In the past, we used to think that once patients reached a certain age, their teeth would eventually be stable. Now we know that’s not true, there is potential for teeth to keep moving throughout life.”

Around 200,000 people are fitted with braces every year in Britain. They are either removable or fixed and most patients are now given a removable brace at the end of treatment and told to continue using it at night. However many patients stop wearing them.

Dr Mick Horton, Dean of FGDP (UK), said: “Those working in General Dental Practice should ensure that, before referring for orthodontic treatment, patients are aware that without a personal long-term commitment to retention, it is more likely than not their teeth will relapse.”

Eddie Crouch, vice-chairman of the BDA, said: “Orthodontic treatment can be a lengthy process, but once it has concluded it can come as a shock that it may be necessary to wear retainers for life. There has been little coordinated information for patients on the reasons for this ... and the new campaign is a welcome addition to closing this gap.”