Tips for Retainer Care

After you’ve undergone orthodontic treatment, you’ll want to do all you can to make sure that you keep your smile straight and perfect afterward. That’s why you see people wearing a retainer well after their treatment has been completed.

But wearing a retainer comes with its own requirements. If you don’t take care of your retainer, you’ll end up with a wide variety of issues.

Why you need a retainer

The reason that a orthodontist will tell you to wear a retainer is to prevent your teeth from shifting after braces, or other orthodontic treatment, are completed. A retainer retains your teeth in their straightened state.

Retainer care

Here at Bradshaw & Hathaway in Johnson City, Tennessee, we see quite a few cases where improper retainer care results directly in oral health issues. These issues range from everything as mild as gingivitis to as severe as tooth decay.

That’s what happens when a retainer doesn’t get cleaned as it properly should. Most of the severe problems that Dr. Daniel Bradshaw and Dr. John Hathaway see as a result of improper retainer care stem from this bacteria buildup.

If you clean your retainer, you can eliminate the possible build of plaque. You’ll likely be wearing it just at night, so washing it once in the morning, and once before bed, will do wonders to help keep your teeth straight and healthy.

Don’t let your retainer end up harming your teeth. Practice proper retainer care today. If you have other questions, call us today at 423-929-1126 to see how we can help.