ORTHODONTIC
TIMELINE
What to expect during your first consultation and treatment appointments
Initial Consultation
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Your initial consultation is your first step towards achieving a perfect smile.
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During your consultation, Dr Nevenka Tadic will thoroughly assess your teeth, gums, facial shape and bite. From there, she will be able to discuss whether treatment is needed, and all the options that are most suitable for you.
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If any dental records are needed on the day, one of our Oral Health Therapists will take pre-treatment photographs and digital scans of your teeth. These will be given to Dr Tadic to evaluate at a later date.
Our consultations generally run for about 30-40 minutes and we recommend booking in advance especially during peak periods such as school holidays.
The big day! Braces fitting appointment
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You may find yourself a little nervous in the lead up to the fitting of your braces but it’s important to remember that there is no need to panic, as the process is completely painless.
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In most cases, we will need to see you a few days beforehand to prepare your teeth by placing blue rubber rings called ‘separators’ between your molars. This will create a small amount of space to allow silver rings called ‘bands’ to be fitted around those teeth. The bands act as an anchor for the braces and allow for heavy duty chewing.
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A few days after the separators, we book you in again for your braces fitting appointment. Our team of Oral Health Therapists will remove the separators and glue the bands around the back molar teeth.
Dr Tadic will then expertly glue the braces onto your teeth and place a light wire to begin with, that will connect the braces together.
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We will go through oral hygiene instructions together and teach you how to brush with braces. Your diet will need to change a little, as you will now have to avoid hard sticky foods and foods with a high sugar content.
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You may experience a little discomfort for the first few days – this is normal and it will slowly ease. We recommend Panadol or Nurofen to manage any tenderness.
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First phase of treatment
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For younger children who are not quite ready for braces, Dr Tadic may recommend a first phase of treatment.
This usually involves a small appliance which will correct an abnormality Dr Tadic has observed. It could be involved with helping adult teeth g row into their natural spaces, widening an upper arch or to help correct a deep overbite.
Some of the appliances involved in first phase treatment are:
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Rapid Maxillary Expander (RME)
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Quad Helix Expander
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Twin Block
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Upper and lower lingual arches/space maintainer
First phase treatments may lead into a second phase, which is braces treatment.
Regular adjustments
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Regular adjustments are booked in every 6-8 weeks, where our clinical team will change or adjust the wires to keep the teeth moving in the right direction.
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It’s best to stick to a soft-food diet for the first day or two after each adjustment (avoid hard or sticky foods like boiled lollies, popcorn or chewing gum).
We recommend soft foods such as:
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Soup
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Mashed potato, pumpkin or sweet potato
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Fruit or vegetable smoothies
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Yoghurt
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Ice-cream or frozen yoghurt
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Macaroni cheese or other soft pasta dishes
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Soft fruit like bananas, berries and pawpaw
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Porridge or rice pudding
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Braces require regular maintenance – but a memorable smile is more than worth it.
We highly recommend that you still see your local dentist for your check ups and 6 monthly cleans.
Post treatment
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Once your treatment is complete and your smile is beautiful and perfect, you will be required to wear a retainer.
Retainers are worn to hold the teeth in their newly corrected position. This is a critical part of long-term care because if you do not wear your retainer, then your teeth can end up moving back to their original positions!
Some patients may require a fixed wire, which is a thin piece of metal wire that is glued to the back of your teeth. This acts a safety net to ensure that your teeth do not move and gives you the freedom to wear your retainers at night only unless specified otherwise.
Not every patient requires a fixed wire but if you do, it will be placed at the same time as removing your braces.
Review appointments are made over the next few years post-treatment however in time, they will be reduced gradually. You should always keep your retainers.