NHS RETAINERS

RETAINERS (Clear)

Now that your braces have been taken off, it is important that the teeth are maintained in the new position until the bone that holds them in place has solidified around them – to make them more stable and prevent them from slowly moving towards their original position. The retainer is the appliance that will do this. A lot of time and effort has been spent in getting the teeth straight, and it would be a shame if they were to become crooked again just because the retainers were not worn.

***The retainers are to be worn all the time for the first 2 months apart from when cleaning your teeth, eating or chewing , and drinking hot drinks, e.g. tea or coffee, or swimming. If you smoke, please take them out before you do so. After that, you can leave them off in the day-time but they should be worn every night from about 6 pm/7 pm till the following morning (again leaving them out when you are eating, etc). If you forgot to wear them one night, then wear during the day time. The first few days, they may feel a bit tight. Give yourself time to get used to them.

If you have any problems with your retainers, please contact your orthodontist as soon as possible – before the teeth start to move and become crooked. If you are going away on holidays, please remember to take them with you. As long as you wear the retainers as instructed, they will always fit. If they no longer fit the way they fitted the first time you were given the retainers, then you have not been wearing them long enough or regularly and the teeth are moving and may soon become crooked. 

To clean the retainers, we advise that you use Retainer Brite tablets. Dissolve one tablet in water (in a container) and leave the retainers in the solution for about 30mins. Please do not put the retainers in warm water.

If you have a dog in the house, please keep your retainers away from the dog as they love chewing on the retainer.

Please purchase a retainer box at the reception desk – to ensure that you do not lose them. A lost retainer would currently cost you about £92 each or both £184. 

Please wear your retainers for as long as possible. The longer you wear them, the more stable the teeth would be. The only way to guarantee that the teeth do not move at all, is to wear the retainers, indefinitely.Good luck.