WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PERMANENT METAL WIRE IN THE BACK OF MY TEETH AND THE VIVERA RETENTION?
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PERMANENT METAL WIRE IN THE BACK OF MY TEETH AND THE VIVERA RETENTION?
RETENTION From DIGITAL ORTHODONTICS - Solo Edition by Dr. Bak Nguyen
This is a great question. First of all the metal wire is not permanent. It will eventually break and will need to be replaced. Also, the metal wire is protecting the 4 lower anterior as they are clued on the 2 lower canines. The same can be done on the upper arch, attaching the 4 anterior to the canines, although, the upper wire is not as usual as a retention means.
This will mobilize the 4 most vulnerable teeth subjected to relapse but it won't stop the lower jaw from continuous growth, moving slowly the lower anterior teeth in a collision course with the back of the upper anterior teeth. Because of that growth, over the year, the metal wire will break and will have to be replaced.
The vivera retention is a mold made to custom fit all your teeth, protecting not only the most vulnerable but all of them. It also has the advantage of being a night guard protecting your teeth from grinding on against the other. Sure, you will wear down your retainers but trust me, that is a much cheaper alternative to a fractured tooth!
In addition to that, flossing and cleaning your teeth without the presence of a wire is also much more convenient and easy. Think of it this way, a vivera retainer is like a mirror image of your hard drive as you just clean up your computer. Wearing them every night you are maintaining the "perfect" image that you and your attending both like at the end of your treatment.
In addition to that, if your teeth have somehow moved a little bit, wearing the vivera for a few days, day and night, will bring them back at their place, for as long as the difference was minimal. This will not work if you've stopped wearing your trays for weeks and the relapse crowding is considerable. In that case, you will have to go through treatment once more.
The moral of the story is to not sleep without your retentions for as long as you want to keep your results. Both wire and vivera retentions will have to be renewed each 4-5 years to compensate for the continuous growth of your lower jaw. So the retention therapy is permanent but the appliances will have to be renewed.