How long to wear retainers 24/7

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#1 Post by **TimSeattle** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 11:50 am

I did a search at Archwired and Google and there seems to be a wide variance in recommended times to wear retainers day and night after debanding.

24/7 for a year is the longest recommended time I've found (Dr Randall on the AsktheDoc forum), and have seen as short a time as a month. The orthodontic literature seems to be inconclusive about the scientific evidence.

How long did your ortho tell you to wear your retainer 24/7? Does this vary with the type of retainer? I have an Essix top and bottom (clear,plastic)

My ortho is recommending 8 weeks of 24/7 then every night afterwards--not sure how long I am supposed to do that before wearing them at night less often. I've read that it a standard ortho recomendation to use retainers for life as teeth are always moving.

This is my 2nd round of braces. I had them as a teenager but the orthodontists then did not recommend as long a time wearing retainers.
My teeth now look almost exactly the same as in my high school graduation photo 40 years ago. I want to ensure this time that my teeth stay straight!

Tim

#2 Post by **DaisyMay66** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 5:59 pm

My ortho recommends full time wear for 9 months. Then, evenings and nights for another 9 months. Afterwards, every night forever.
Seems kinda strict, but I will follow his advice to keep my smile which I am very proud of. My smile is not perfect, but darn good!!

#3 Post by **serendipity** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 9:30 pm

Tim(Seattle)

I wore my retainers 24/7 for 8 weeks after debandment. Now I am wearing them nightly and have another appointment in 3 months to check how I am doing. Not sure what happens at this second appointment but I plan to wear my retainers every night when I sleep regardless.

Hope that helps.

~serendipity~

#4 Post by **Betty Bat** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 10:21 am

Got my upper braces off last Thursday and got my Essex retainer this morning. I was told to wear it 24/7 for two weeks and then only at night.

So, this info is hot off the presses! But, I'm sure it depends on the individual case.

(Edited to take out my question about how long to wear them at night. There are a lot of threads on this - I just didn't look hard enough!)

#5 Post by **Tasha0313** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 3:56 am

You know Tim, I was just wondering the same thing. I have an instruction sheet from my ortho that says:
Months:

1-3 wear both retainers full time (24 hours a day) (remove for cleaning and eating)

4-6 wear both retainers only when sleeping (8 hours a day)

7-12 wear both retainers only when sleeping and only every other day

13-18 wear both retainers only three times per week and only when sleeping

19-24 wear both retainers 2 times per week only when sleeping

25 and thereafter wear your upper and lower retainers at least three hours per week. This is necessary indefinitely. 30 minutes per day is required. The doctors do not need to monitor your case any longer. You are finally relieved of any additional visits to the ortho.

I am on month 3, I go back to the ortho on May 21st and I am going to talk with him about my midline. My midline is a tiny bit off, I know that my teeth are going to settle and shift, but I want him to fix that! So I hope this helps!!

Tasha

#6 Post by **Chris** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 5:32 pm

My instructions were:

First Year: FULL TIME wear except to eat.
Second Year: NIGHT TIME only
Third Year and Forever: 3 nights per week minimum.

Having had some teeth already moving in just 2 months with faithfully wearing my retainer, I'd say I'm in them 24/7 for a year for sure. The hawley wire can push them back in place. If they don't move I'm bringing in the "big guns".

#7 Post by **Betty Bat** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 9:07 am

Yikes! This is starting to worry me.

I have a pamphlet from my ortho about retainers and for both the Hawley and Essix, it says "upon delivery, your retainers should be worn full time for the first two weeks. Remove it only during meals, active physical sports and when brushing your teeth. After the first two weeks, wear it for 12 hours a day".

I'm glad that I only have to wear it 24/7 for two weeks, but I'm worried about why I don't need it longer if everyone else seems to wear it longer!

#8 Post by **LynnHowell** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 9:20 am

I get my retainers tomorrow. I'll ask my ortho while I'm there about wearing them all the time, even when I no longer have to. From what I've read, a lot of people love their hawley and prefer to wear it. I'm going to try to get used to mine so I feel that way as well.

Like I mentioned, I'll ask tomorrow but does anyone know if there are any bad side effects from wearing it more than required?

My luck I will hate the hawley and look back on this post and laugh hysterically.

#9 Post by **Chris** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 12:37 pm

...but does anyone know if there are any bad side effects from wearing it more than required? )

I dont think so unless of course it doesn't allow the teeth to "settle" together as they should. I had a dentist tell me that with either hawley or essix the teeth don't settle as quickly as with a permanent retainer. Perhaps that is just his opinion, not sure.

#10 Post by **hoca** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 3:14 pm

To throw another crazy scenario out there, I was never told to wear my essix retainer 24/7. The bonded retainer is there, well, all the time, but I wore my essix at night only for the first two weeks, then got a special retainer for tongue thrusting that I'm also only supposed to wear at night.

I think part of it depends on what they've done to your teeth. I know that my teeth were unadjusted for 4 months before the braces came off, so they probably settled a lot already. I'm sure that whatever your ortho recommends will be ok.

#11 Post by **Chris** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 4:49 pm

then got a special retainer for tongue thrusting that I'm also only supposed to wear at night..

I'm curious what that retainer looks like...can you post a photo?

#12 Post by **hoca** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 7:28 pm

I'm going to try...I have to figure out how to download pics on my new computer, but I hope to have pics up soon, because I've never seen anything like it any of these forums.

#13 Post by **hannah164** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 7:40 pm

I had my first retainer check today and my ortho just said that my teeth look good and he'll see me again in 3 months! I was supposed to wear my retainers 24/7 for the first 8 weeks but I wan't too faithful with that.

I have been wearing it as much as I can for the past couple of months.

My lower Hawley is supposed to finish tweaking my bite by pushing the teeth forward while my upper Essix is just meant to hold the teeth in place. I assume I just continue to wear it as much as possible.

I can feel some definite changes in my bite, I don't really see any yet...

I definitely don't think wearing your retainer too much can be a bad thing but what do I know!

~hAnnah

#14 Post by **LynnHowell** » Sun Apr 29, 2007 10:37 am

I was told to wear both retainers 24/7 for the first year (except during meals, etc)...after that, I have to wear them both nightly as long as I have teeth.

If you're concerned about the amount of time you're supposed to wear them...then wear them longer. They're your teeth and you've spent a lot of time and money on them (not to mention the pain). My ortho told me wearing mine more than he recommends is just fine (and better).

#15 Post by **mtbrncofn** » Sun Apr 29, 2007 9:26 pm

For me it was 24/7 for eight weeks straight. Then every night for the next 2 years. After that you could go down to 3 times a week. I plan on just doing it forever.