How Often Should I Replace My Retainer?

Posted on 03/11/2024

After you have had braces for a year or two, then comes the retainer. This device holds your teeth in their current corrected position so that they don't revert to their position before you have braces. Many patients ask their orthodontist in Fountain City, TN if they need to replace their retainers. Myers Orthodontics offers sound advice where retainers are concerned.


Depends on the Type of Retainer

No two retainers are fashioned the same because they are made for individual patients and treatment plans. If you have a traditional retainer that has a hard dental resin part that looks like the roof of your mouth and has a wire running around the front, it should be replaced every two years.

Of course, that's just a rule of thumb. Anytime that retainer breaks, cracks, or no longer fits right it should be replaced. If you start wearing a retainer in your early teens, you might need to replace it in your later teens after your mouth has grown with your head. The dental resin part that fits into the hard and soft palate of the roof of your mouth can crack and break if stepped on or even sat on. Hence, any accidental damage requires a replacement sooner.

Then there are invisible, pop-in, pop-out retainers that look like Invisalign trays. These are more fragile than standard retainers and may need replacing every six months to a year. Because of the likelihood of breaking, you might end up replacing them a lot if you aren't careful.

Semi-permanent retainers can't be removed from your mouth. They are secured by brackets on your back teeth. You only need to replace the brackets or wires if they break. Regular follow-up visits with your orthodontist in Bearden or your orthodontist in Fountain City, TN will reveal if you need the brackets or wiring replaced.


The Cost of Replacing a Retainer

If you are replacing a retainer according to your treatment plan and the appointed time to replace it, the cost is already incorporated into the total cost of your orthodontic treatment. However, if you are replacing a retainer because it is lost, broken, doesn't fit, or, even more weirdly, stolen, it costs extra. Whatever your orthodontist in Bearden or orthodontist in Fountain City, TN charges for a replacement retainer is what you will have to pay out of pocket.


Call Your Myers Orthodontics Office Right Away for Retainers

If you find that your retainer needs to be replaced for any reason, call our office today. Waiting too long to get a new retainer might allow your teeth time to shift back and out of position. You don't want that as your replacement retainer won't fit then. Call us right away!