Austin Orthodontist | Austin Orthodontics | Invisalign Austin

Why can’t orthodontic patients wear custom mouthguards for athletics?

Editor — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 09:59:36 +0000

Custom mouthguards conform to an athletes teeth and dental arches. You could fabricate a custom mouthguard for an orthodontic patient, but unfortunately, as the teeth move and the dental arches change shape, the mouthguard would stop fitting properly.

There are several “braces mouthguards” on the market, so please ask us if [...]

What are self ligating brackets?

Editor — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:23:11 +0000

Self ligating brackets are orthodontic brackets that have a built in way to “hold” the wire onto the tooth. Before we had self ligating brackets, each tooth had to be individually tied onto the orthodontic archwire with either an elastic or steel ligature as seen in the picture below:

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Austin Rocks!

Editor — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:47:07 +0000

Last week I saw a lot of live music and was reminded of how cool it is to live in Austin. Not only did I hang out some at ACL, but also got to see a live show at the Long Center (Bon Iver) and attended my first Austin City Limits show (Arcade Fire). Almost [...]

Copper Triangle Loop

Editor — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 14:12:53 +0000

Since some of our patients are cyclists, I thought I’d post ride report of what for me was an epic ride for many reasons. My wife Katie and I recently had an opportunity to take a quick vacation after my parents offered to keep our 2 and 4 year old for the weekend. We decided [...]

Amber and Jon

Editor — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 10:17:02 +0000

amberandjon

Editor — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 09:04:44 +0000

rojoboys

Editor — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 12:56:36 +0000

When is the best time for my child to get braces?

Editor — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 15:42:31 +0000

There is no simple answer to this question and the ideal age to start orthodontic treatment depends on the individual and their specific needs. Many parents are under the impression that if a child still has baby teeth, then there is no need to have an orthodontic evaluation. This is sometimes true, but many times [...]

Why do orthodontic patients have to avoid certain foods?

Editor — Tue, 10 May 2011 14:50:51 +0000

The easy answer is so that they don’t break their orthodontic appliances. We have had patients ask us why, with today’s technology, we can’t design a “orthodontic super glue” that would stand up to anything we eat. Actually, we probably could design an orthodontic adhesive that would keep braces in place no matter what we [...]

Why are soft drinks bad for orthodontic patients?

Editor — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 17:21:18 +0000

Orthodontic appliances (braces), simply put, make it more difficult to clean our teeth. Soft drinks can both directly and indirectly harm our teeth, so if our patients can reduce or eliminate the intake of their favorite carbonated, sugary beverage, they can maintain a healthier oral environment which in turn makes excellent oral hygiene easier to [...]