In the early days, stainless steel bands were cemented on individual teeth. This causes more pain as separating procedures for individual teeth were needed before the bands were fitted. Heavy stainless steel wires exerting high forces were used to move teeth. Almost 50% of the tooth would be covered by the metal band making it visually less appealing and sometimes resulting in patients being called “Metal Mouth”.
Since then, the world of Orthodontics has evolved greatly. From the beginning of 2000, there has been a tremendous change in Orthodontic technology. It was a big leap forward. It began with the introduction of a completely new type of bracket – self ligating braces.
Self Ligating Brackets (e.g. Damon brackets) offer low force and low friction technology. With the combined use of these new brackets with super elastic nickel titanium wires and modern bonding materials, teeth can be moved much faster and with significantly reduced discomfort.