Retainer: Keeping Your Braces Result for Life

What is a lingual retainer?
A lingual retainer is a thin wire bonded with small composite pads to the tongue side of your teeth, usually the six lower front teeth from canine to canine (as in the illustration above). It is invisible from the front and works around the clock without you having to remember it.

Why does it matter?
After braces, teeth tend to drift back toward their old positions. Lower front tooth crowding in particular has a marked tendency to relapse, and indefinite retention is a good option to prevent this . Without a retainer, crowding, rotations ad gaps can return and undo your treatment.

Advantages: Unlike removable retainer trays, it is always in place, needs no patient cooperation, is invisible.

Disadvantages: The bond can loosen.  Wires can also fracture, plaque collects more easily, and a deformed wire can occasionally move teeth unintentionally. The latest Cochrane review found low-certainty evidence and no clearly superior retainer type (Martin 2023), so individual assessment by your orthodontist matters.

Why we use 99% titanium retainer wire
 Titanium is nickel-free, highly corrosion-resistant and it is widely used in support surgeries.

How to maintain it

• Brush twice daily, including the tongue side of the wire.
• Clean under the wire every day with a floss threader, superfloss or interdental brush.
• Call us promptly if the wire feels loose or sharp, or if your teeth seem to shift. If you are not living in Istanbul, we will also give you a removable Essix type retainer. Wear the removable retainer overnight until you have your retainer fixed.