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Ortho Dictionary |
Choose a glossary:
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Appliance: Anything your orthodontist attaches to your teeth which
moves your teeth or changes the shape of your jaw.
Archwire: The metal wire that acts as a track to guide your teeth
along as they move. It is changed periodically throughout treatment
as your teeth move to their new positions.
Band: A metal ring that is cemented to your tooth, going completely
around it. Bands provide a way to attach brackets to your teeth.
Bond: The seal created by orthodontic cement that holds your
appliances in place.
Bracket: A metal or ceramic part cemented ("bonded") to your tooth
that holds your archwire in place.
Coil Spring: A spring that fits between your brackets and over your archwire to open space between your teeth.
Elastic (Rubber Band): A small rubber band that is hooked between
different points on your appliance to provide pressure to move your
teeth to their new position.
Elastic Tie: The tiny rubber band that fits around your bracket to
hold the archwire in place. They come in a variety of colors.
Headgear: Headgear uses an external wire apparatus known as a facebow to gently guide the growth of your face and jaw by moving
your teeth into proper position. The force is applied to the facebow
by a spring-loaded neck strap or head strap. The straps have a
safety release that disconnects if the facebow is pulled or snagged.
Headgear Tube: A round, hollow attachment on your back bands. The
inner bow of your headgear fits into it.
Hook: A welded or removable arm to which elastics are attached.
Ligature: A thin wire that holds your archwire into your bracket.
Lip Bumper: A lip bumper is an archwire attached to a molded piece
of plastic. The lip bumper holds back the molars on your lower jaw
to provide more space for your other teeth.
Mouthguard: A device that protects your mouth from injury when you
participate in sports or rigorous activities.
Palatal Expander: A device that makes your upper jaw wider.
Retainer: An appliance that is worn after your braces are removed,
the retainer attaches to your upper and/or lower teeth to hold them
in place. Some retainers are removable, while others are bonded to
the tongue-side of several teeth.
Separator or Spacer: A small rubber ring that creates space between
your teeth before the bands are attached.
Tie Wire: A fine wire that is twisted around your bracket to hold
the archwire in place.
Wax: Wax is used to stop your braces from irritating your lips.
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Banding: The process of fitting and cementing orthodontic bands to
your teeth.
Bonding: The process of attaching brackets to your teeth using
special orthodontic cement.
Cephalometric X-ray: An X-ray of your head which shows the relative
positions and growth of the face, jaws, and teeth.
Consultation: A meeting with your orthodontist to discuss a
treatment plan.
Debanding: The process of removing cemented orthodontic bands from
your teeth.
Debonding: The process of removing cemented orthodontic brackets
from your teeth.
Impressions: The process of making a model of your teeth by biting
into a soft material that hardens into a mold of your teeth. Your
orthodontist will use these impressions to prepare your treatment
plan.
Invisalign®: An alternative to traditional braces, Invisalign
straightens your teeth with a series of clear custom-molded
aligners. Invisalign can correct some, but not all, orthodontic
problems.
Ligation: The process of attaching an archwire to the brackets on
your teeth.
Panoramic X-ray: An X-ray that rotates around your head to take
pictures of your teeth, jaw, and other facial areas. |
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