Clear Braces Specialist - Orthodontist | Fountain Valley Huntington Beach

Long gone are the early days of orthodontics, when traditional metal braces were the only option available for people who wanted straighter teeth and a flawless smile. Today, innovations in orthodontic medicine have created a wide variety of tooth-straightening options, including aesthetically-pleasing clear braces. Board certified orthodontist Dr. Chi H. Bui specializes in all types of braces, including clear braces. Her state-of-the-art practice, The OrthoBee Orthodontics, is located in Fountain Valley, next door to Huntington Beach, California, and serves patients from across Orange County.

Clear braces are also called ceramic braces because of the material they are made from. They are similar in size and shape as traditional metal braces, but they have either enamel-colored or clear brackets that visually blend into your teeth. Some types of clear braces also use enamel-colored wires to make them even less noticeable.

Although early clear ceramic braces had a greater tendency toward breakage and were more prone to staining or changing color over time, ceramic braces technology has improved substantially over the past 10-15 years. Because of these improvements, clear braces are a popular alternative to traditional metal braces.

The primary advantage of clear braces is in what you see and don’t see: People continue to see your smile, not a mouth full of metal. As more people have come to understand the importance of orthodontics to their overall dental health, the advances in aesthetically-pleasing braces have allowed more patients -- including more adults -- to consider orthodontic treatment for an imperfect bite, crooked teeth, or spacing issues.

Clear braces are the perfect solution for patients with cosmetic concerns and often used on older teenagers and adults.

Damon Clear is a newer, innovative clear braces technology that combines tieless brackets with state-of-the-art archwires. A passive slide mechanism, known as self-ligation, keeps each archwire in its bracket, while at the same time allowing it to move freely within that bracket. This advanced approach reduces friction and binding, so that your teeth can move more efficiently and comfortably. In fact, the Damon System and similar self-ligating bracket systems, such as the Inovation-C Braces, are clinically proven to move teeth more comfortably, with excellent smile and bite results.

One of the most important aspects of Damon Clear technology is the fact that it enables archwires to move. That’s because binding archwires in place with elastics or plastic clips, as is done with traditional braces, can create friction that slows down treatment. This means that you’ll probably see faster results with Damon Clear. Clinical studies show that the Damon System can straighten teeth up to six months faster than traditional braces in a 24 month case.

Many patients have found that Damon Clear is more comfortable than traditional braces, as well. That’s because tieless braces don't need to be tightened, and are therefore gentler for your teeth and gum tissues.