Straightening Your Teeth: What to Expect After Surgery

Keeping your retainers clean is essential for good oral health. It's important to ask your dentist or orthodontist for specific cleaning instructions for your retainers, as these will vary depending on your individual needs. Generally, retainers can be easily cleaned in the sink with regular toothpaste and a toothbrush. However, some may require a mouthwash or denture cleaner.

When it comes to tooth straightening, surgery is often the last resort option. This is because it's a minor surgery and people usually only resort to it when they want a radical and definitive solution to their problem. It's not as scary or as painful as many people imagine, so it's important to put it into context. People often choose dental straightening surgery when the problem is not with the teeth but with the jaw.

After surgery, many people will need to follow a special diet to cope with swelling and restricted jaw movement. Your surgeon or dietician may recommend foods and nutritional supplements in the form of purees or liquids instead of solid foods, especially during the first few weeks. Orthognathic surgery doesn't mean you won't need traditional braces or aligner therapy to straighten your teeth either. McDonald has decades of experience straightening teeth and has been a certified Invisalign provider for years since the company began in the early 2000s.

The main purpose of braces is to achieve an ideal relationship between the jaws when there is a slight overbite and the teeth are straightened. Moving your teeth to the right place for a great smile and healthy teeth requires an orthodontist who has received 2 to 3 years of specialized training after dental school. Whatever tooth straightening option you choose, don't try to do it yourself at home to avoid complications. Invisible braces, or transparent aligners, are a great option for people looking to straighten their teeth without traditional metal braces.

After preparation and consultation with a specialist, a treatment plan is created that includes one of three types of surgeries to straighten the teeth and jaw. It's also important to remember that if you stop wearing your retainer for a couple of weeks or months, your teeth may move and the retainer may no longer fit your teeth properly. Use your retainers to prevent your teeth from returning to the wrong position and to keep your teeth straight after braces. Tooth straightening surgery is an aggressive treatment option for people who have imbalances between the upper and lower jaws.

It's a type of orthognathic surgery that repairs a serious malocclusion by moving the jaws to a more favorable position. If you lose sleep thinking about how your teeth look and feel, you'll enjoy a huge confidence boost once your teeth are straight.

Corinne Martin
Corinne Martin

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