You wore your braces for months, maybe years. Your teeth looked great on the day everything came off, but something’s changed. Maybe your lower teeth are starting to crowd again, or a gap you thought was gone for good is coming back.
This is due to orthodontic relapse, and it's one of the most common concerns I hear from patients at our Aurora, CO, dental office.
Why Do Teeth Shift After Braces or Invisalign?
Your teeth are held in place by small ligaments that have a kind of memory. After orthodontic treatment, those ligaments still "remember" where your teeth used to be, and they gently pull in that direction over time.
Other factors are changes in your jaw as you age, habits like tongue thrust, or other things happening in your mouth you might not be aware of. However, the biggest one is inconsistent retainer wear.
The American Association of Orthodontists recommends consistent wear for exactly this reason. Even with perfect compliance, some very minor shifting can happen over the years — our bodies change, and our teeth can shift with them. But consistent retainer wear keeps those changes minimal.
How Do I Know If My Teeth Have Relapsed?
A few signs to watch for are crowding or gaps showing up again, your bite feeling slightly off, or a retainer that no longer fits the way it used to. Some minor settling after treatment is normal and expected. However, if your retainer feels tight or won't snap in at all, your teeth have likely moved enough that you should come in for a re-evaluation.
How Do You Treat Orthodontic Relapse?
It depends on how much your teeth or bite have moved. If I can catch the shift soon enough, a new or adjusted retainer may be enough to guide things back. For more noticeable relapse, I might recommend a short course of Invisalign retreatment, which often corrects the issue without going through a full round of braces again.
Noticing some shifting or a change in your bite? A quick evaluation can tell me exactly what's happening and the steps we need to take. Call Baller Dental & Ortho at Southlands at 720-653-3223 to schedule an appointment.