Conventional Metal Braces are made of medical grade stainless steel. They require either wire ties or elastic ties (O-rings) to hold the archwire in the braces. We have many different coloured O-rings to give you coloured braces and you can change these coloured O-rings at each adjustment visit.

In the “old days”, metal braces were attached to bands that wrapped around the entire tooth. Nowadays, people wear small metal braces that are glued to the front of each tooth (a big improvement!). We still use bands however they are usually reserved for molars or teeth with fillings that spill to the outside surface of a tooth. Metal braces tend to be less expensive than other types of braces.

There are other metal braces that do not require O-rings but instead have a clip to hold the archwire in to the brace. These are termed self-ligating braces. We do use self-ligating braces in our practice however numerous studies have shown no difference in treatment affect by using these self-ligating braces instead of metal or clear braces (though this is not always reflected in the advertising of orthodontic supply companies!).