What happens to my braces? Orthodontic treatments during COVID-19

If you are going though orthodontic treatments which require regular visits to a dentist, movement restriction during COVID-19 must have posed a big question regarding how to keep continuity of treatment. We asked Dr Krishnan Nair, a respected orthodontist in Dubai, on how he manages such challenges. 

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Dr. Krishnan Nair

Specialist Orthodontist
Dr Krish Esthetik Studio Dental Clinic

How COVID-19 is affecting ongoing orthodontic treatments?

What I feel is, the current orthodontic treatment will get affected to an extent but not in a really bad phase. What I see, it also depends on the technology we use. For example we have different types of braces available in the market today. We have the modern technology as well as we have the traditional braces. So, if you talk about the traditional braces, the patient has to come to the dental clinic every month for their monthly reviews and adjustments. But, when it comes to the modern technology like: Invisalign, or even Damon braces, or Carriere motion braces, the patient doesn’t have to come to the dental clinic every month. They can be at their home and those are the actual patients who has bigger potential for a virtual consultation and it really helps them a lot.

How do you ensure treatement continuity during COVID-19?

I personally believe, 'being with the patient' in this hard time is the most important. Whether it is traditional braces or a clear aligner. I have patients who contact me saying that they have pokey wires or even that they have broken brackets. The patients should be able to reach out to you any time. So your availability is the most important. As a healthcare provider, it is very important to be with your patient in this hard time and at the same time you need to give them tips on how to manage these issues when they are not in a position to come to the dental clinic. Like, you can send videos, or you can prepare videos and send to them, make them aware about the current situation, and at the same time educate them on how to manage the pokey wires or broken brackets. These are some of the common problems that can happen in our day-to-day orthodontic treatment.

As a doctor what we have to do is we have to give them solutions to the patients, how to manage these issues. Simple, we just have to put some extra effort, make some videos, how to cut the extra wire or pokey brackets, how to manage it.

*Disclaimer: Please consider the information in this video/article most recent as per date and medical recommendations towards COVID-19 may change as the situation evolves.