We hear a lot today about “6 month Braces”, whenever we visit dentists’ websites and in advertisements on radio and newspapers. In reality, there is no such thing as “6 month Braces, as it is not a technique, a philosophy, or some magic wand that the advertisers of it would have the public believe.

In reality, some patients may take 6 months to get a satisfactory result-indeed some patients take 3 or 4 months, but the process is not determined by a promise on a time scale but by the problem, and the basic biological principles and rules by which all techniques and people must abide.

Advertising is a way to get patients through the door and “6 month Braces” is a catchy way to do it. Some problems may take 6 months, but the timescale of treatment is dictated by biology and the skill of the operator and not by any magic wand of so called 6 month braces, which in reality does not exist as a clinical entity.

To be sure of a good outcome, make sure the dentist is good and you trust that he/she knows what they are doing. Ask questions and be happy with the reply. If they can’t explain it to you, why not?.

Dr. John Lawlor