WHAT IS A RETAINER?
A clear retainer is a thin, transparent plate made of plastic that looks similar to a clear aligner or mouthguard. The purpose of the retainer is to discreetly help your teeth keep their post-treatment positions. These retainers are barely noticeable during wear. You can also remove them to eat or clean your teeth. For best results, retainers are to be worn 24 hours a day for the first 6 months. We recommend you wear your retainer for about 12-14 hours a day to ensure proper tooth retention.
How to use and care for your clear retainer?
It is your responsibility to wear your retainer enough to ensure the retainer stays comfortable. If the clear retainer is excessively tight when first put in each night and does not become comfortable soon afterwards, then it should be worn more than 12 – 14 hours a day.
It is important to keep your retainer out of warm or sunny places because the plastic can melt or distort. Usually it is advised you to take your retainers out to eat. For the same reason, you should avoid drinking hot beverages while wearing your clear retainer. When you are not wearing your retainer, you should keep it in the provided plastic container to minimize the risk of it being lost or broken.
To clean your clear retainer, simply brush it gently with your toothbrush & toothpaste. Do not boil, soak or vigorously brush your retainer.
You may notice some small holes on the biting surface of your clear retainer after prolonged usage. There is no need to be concerned about these holes as long as they do not hinder you from wearing your retainer.
Clear retainers are generally worn for approximately three years until the wisdom teeth have been removed. However, many patients choose to wear their retainers indefinitely to ensure their teeth stay straight. While your teeth will become more comfortable with their new positions over time, they will always be at risk for moving back out of alignment.
Getting used to your retainers?
Your speech may be somewhat affected during the initial days of wearing the retainers. You should not try to take the retainers out when talking. The more you wear your retainers, the quicker your speech will adjust back to normal. There can be some extra saliva in your mouth initially when wearing your retainers. after a few days, the excess saliva will decrease.
Caring for your retainers
You should take retainers out and leave them at home when you go to the beach or the pool.
During the sports you should take your retainers out and wear a mouth guard.
In case if the retainers fall on the ground, you should never put them in hot or boiling water.
You should not use your tongue to remove retainers. This can loosen your retainers and allow teeth to shift.
You should not bite retainers into place. You can use your fingers to push them onto your teeth when you insert them.
You should keep retainers away from pets.