Our Offices
Prairieville, Denham Springs, & Central Retainers
Protect Your Smile
At Misuraca Orthodontics, we believe that you deserve to keep your smile straight and healthy for life, and retainers are a big part of that goal. Dr. Vance Misuraca will work with you to provide the best retainer for your smile.
Options For Your Smile
Your retainer will be one of the most important parts of keeping your smile straight and healthy for a lifetime. At Misuraca Orthodontics, Dr. Misuraca offers Essix, Hawley, and fixed retainers at our Prairieville, Denham Springs, and Central offices.
Essix Retainers
Essix retainers are clear, removable trays that fit closely over your teeth. They look similar to clear aligners and offer a low-profile way to maintain your smile after treatment.
How Essix Retainers Work
We make your Essix retainers from digital scans of your teeth, ensuring a snug, customized fit.
Since they fully cover the teeth and are easy to remove, many patients like them for their simplicity and subtle appearance.
Hawley Retainers
Hawley retainers are a more traditional removable option featuring a molded acrylic base and a metal wire across the front teeth. We’ve used them for years to help our patients maintain alignment after braces or clear aligner treatment.
How Hawley Retainers Work
One of the main advantages of a Hawley retainer is adjustability. If minor shifting occurs over time, the retainer can sometimes be adjusted rather than fully replaced, making it a practical long-term option.
Caring For Your Retainer
Your retainer plays a big role in protecting your results after braces or clear aligner treatment. To keep your smile in place, you should wear your retainer as directed by Dr. Misuraca and take good care of it every day.
Here are a few simple ways to help your retainer stay clean, safe, and effective:
- Wear your retainer as directed, and remove it only when needed for eating, brushing, or specific activities.
- Bring your retainer to follow-up visits so we can make sure it still fits properly.
- Keep your retainer in its case whenever you are not wearing it to help prevent loss or damage.
- Call our office if your retainer feels too tight, too loose, cracked, or broken.
- Let us know right away if you lose your retainer, since teeth can begin shifting sooner than many patients expect.
- Clean your retainer daily with a toothbrush and lukewarm water to help remove buildup and keep it fresh.
- Give yourself a little time to adjust if speaking feels different at first. Reading or talking out loud can help.
- Keep your retainer away from heat, including hot water and hot cars, since high temperatures can warp the material.
With the right care, your retainer can keep doing its job and help your smile stay right where it belongs.
Retainers FAQs
Wondering what life with retainers is like? Here’s what to expect when retaining your smile after treatment at Misuraca Orthodontics.
After active treatment ends, most patients need to wear their retainers full-time for a period of time before switching to nighttime wear. From there, you’ll usually wear your retainers at night long-term to help keep your teeth from shifting.
Dr. Misuraca will give you instructions based on your treatment and smile, but in general, retainers are a lasting part of protecting your results.
Start Smiling With Clear Aligners Today
If you want a convenient treatment that blends right in with your smile, then clear aligners from Misuraca Orthodontics could be the key to a lifetime of happy, healthy smiles. Your consultation with Dr. Misuraca is free, so nothing is stopping you from starting today! Ready to smile? We offer same-day appointments so you can get in the office and start smiling sooner!