What if a patient doesn’t want attachment?

You’ve made the decision to receive orthodontic treatment with clear aligners to correct your malaligned teeth and get the smile you’ve always wanted. You specifically chose clear aligners because you were told that they were discrete, comfortable, and more importantly virtually invisible. However, this is not always the case.

Most patients are surprised to learn that although clear aligners do not use brackets and wires like traditional fixed appliances, it may still be necessary to make use of tooth-coloured “attachments” to achieve the predicted tooth movements. These attachments are small and bulb-like and are essentially affixed to your tooth surfaces to allow quicker and more effective tooth movements. They also act as grips for the aligners to hold onto and are snugly fit onto them to increase anchorage and ensure directional movement.

Can you reject attachments?

If you’re totally against the idea of anything that can prevent you from a completely discrete experience, you can decline attachments. Your clear aligner treatment may still work, only slower and less effectively.

In cases with extreme malocclusions, attachments may be mandatory to achieve the desired outcomes. Attachments are the only way your clear aligners can achieve these movements. Your only other option may be traditional metal braces.

How do you remove attachments?

Say, you received attachments and do not want them anymore. Or perhaps, you’re at the end of your treatment and need to get rid of them. Do you still have the option to remove them? Yes.

The procedure for removing these attachments is very simple. The dentist will use a specialized tool to chip away the composite material that was used to adhere the attachments to the tooth. This process is completely painless, although you may feel some vibrations from the tool as it gradually removes the attachment material.

What should you do if the attachments fall off?

If the attachments are not properly bonded to the tooth surface, they may fall off. This can happen due to improper curing of the composite material or due to excess saliva in the mouth during placement.

As we mentioned before, attachments are crucial for tooth movement during aligner therapy, so in any case that they break off, you should immediately visit your orthodontist as soon as possible to get the attachments reattached.

Finally, if you do not want to keep the attachments on, do not attempt to remove the attachments yourself. They are bonded to your teeth and may cause enamel damage if you simply scrape them off. Visit your orthodontist to explore your options.