Types of Orthodontic Appliances | Canales Orthodontics

Types of Orthodontic Appliances

To achieve the desired results from clear aligners or braces in Gardendale or Alabaster, AL, you or your kiddo’s personalized treatment plan may include any of the following orthodontic appliances.

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What do orthodontic appliances do?

Orthodontic appliances have a variety of uses, including facilitating more efficient tooth movement, holding space in the mouth for permanent teeth to grow, and/or helping to support proper growth and development of the jaw bones.

Palatal expanders are a common appliance used in early orthodontic treatment for children whose jaw bones are still developing.

These appliances widen the upper jaw to create the necessary space for teeth to erupt in a healthy alignment.

Palatal expanders can help prevent crowding and impaction by guiding proper development of the jaw bone.

The rapid palatal expander (the most common type of palatal expander) is bonded to the upper molars on both sides of the top jaw, with a screw located in the center of the appliance.

To activate the palatal expander, you’ll insert a special key to turn the center screw, which expands the device ever so slightly and widens the palate gradually over time.

If your child requires a palatal expander, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about cleaning it, activating it and caring for it!

Temporary anchorage devices (TADs) are temporary dental implants embedded into the bone to create an “anchor” that assists with tooth movement. These appliances are generally used when certain teeth require shifting, and others don’t. TADs enable us to treat individual teeth with greater efficiency.

These anchorage devices appear as tiny metal buttons, strategically implanted into an area of the jaw bone. A small wire or elastic may be attached to the TAD to connect it with the specific tooth (or teeth) in need of treatment.

Spacers, also called separators, are small rubber bands that help to create the space necessary for bands of appliances to be placed. A metal band is placed around the back molars to anchor the arch wires in place.

In cases where the molars are too close together to allow these metal bands to be placed, separators may be used.

Separators are temporary appliances that are only worn for about one to two weeks before active treatment begins.

The reverse-pull headgear (facemask) is an appliance used to promote proper alignment of the jaw bones for young kids around the ages of 7 to 10. We call it a “Catcher’s Mask!” It works by pulling the upper jaw forward to treat underbite conditions that may otherwise require jaw surgery to correct.

The lower lingual holding arch is a space maintainer that uses metal bands around the two lower molars, with a metal wire spanning from the molars, around the inside of the bottom teeth.

Used to hold the necessary space in the mouth for premolars to grow, the lower lingual arch appliance establishes the proper foundation that shapes the lower arch in a healthy alignment.

Quad-Helix Appliances widen the upper jaw with metal bands around the top molars and active helix springs lining the arch.

These appliances treat crossbites and crowding. They can be removable or fixed, but they’re usually fixed and bonded to teeth.

The Pendulum Appliance and Distal Jet is hidden in the roof of the mouth and used to shift the molar teeth to create the necessary room for other teeth to emerge in alignment.

This appliance treats crowding and various bite misalignments by using metal bands around the back molars, wires bonded to the middle teeth, and an acrylic plate that rests behind the front teeth.

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Schedule a Complimentary Consultation

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2

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