Ceramic braces
Ceramic braces can be a beautiful alternative to metal braces. Ceramic braces are the same size and shape as metal braces, except that they have tooth-coloured or clear brackets that blend in to teeth.Tooth coloured wires can be used with these braces for better aestheticsas they become less noticeable. The main edge of ceramic braces is their aesthetic and cosmetic appeal.
Benefits of Ceramic Braces
- Ceramic braces are available as semi-translucent ceramic brackets, which are better for very white teeth, or tooth-coloured ceramic, which is better for slightly darker teeth. Either way, they blend in well.
- Ceramic braces are strong, especially if they are high-quality. They usually don’t chip or break unless they are badly abused.
Drawbacks of Ceramic Braces
- Ceramic brackets are more expensive than metal brackets. They are also bigger, but they blend in with teeth so this isn’t an issue for most patients.
- Like traditional metal braces, ceramic braces use clear or white ligatures to hold the archwire in place. The ligatures are little rubber bands, so they can stain because they’re porous. They’re changed at every adjustment. As an alternative self-ligating ceramic braces can be used which do not require ligatures and thus, are more aesthetic.
- Metal wires are used, which will be visible, but this can be overcome bycoated wires which are tooth coloured and are thus less visible.