how do modern braces work? How can just two strings of wire pull your teeth in some directions, when they actually are held by the teeth?

Question

how do modern braces work? How can just two strings of wire pull your teeth in some directions, when they actually are held by the teeth?

In: 8

Answer 1

They’re not strings, they’re spring steel. They get bent into the shape your teeth ‘should’ be, then attached to the braces, putting the wire under tension in whatever direction, pulling your teeth into the shape the wire Wants to be… (this is a really slow process but it’s happening)

That’s why you need to go in every so often to have them ‘adjusted’ with a new wire bent slightly differently (closer to what it should be)