What are fixed braces?
Fixed braces, the ones most people still call train tracks, are small brackets bonded to each tooth and joined by a wire that runs across them. The wire is what does the work. It wants to return to its own shape, and in doing so it carries your teeth with it.
They are the most versatile appliance in orthodontics. Aligners are excellent for many cases, but where teeth are severely rotated, badly crowded or need to be moved bodily through bone, fixed braces still do it more predictably and often more quickly.
Modern brackets bear little resemblance to the ones you may remember. They are considerably smaller, sit lower against the tooth, and the wires used today are thinner and more flexible, so treatment is a good deal more comfortable than it was twenty years ago.
If appearance is a concern, the same treatment is available with tooth-coloured ceramic brackets. Younger patients often go the other way and choose coloured elastics, changed at each visit.
Book a consultation at our Ballinteer Road clinic.
Who are fixed braces for?
Almost anyone. We treat children, teenagers and adults with fixed braces at our Dundrum clinic, and there is no upper age limit provided your teeth and gums are healthy.
They are particularly well suited to cases involving significant crowding, large gaps, teeth that are rotated or lying at an angle, and bite problems such as deep bites, open bites and crossbites. Where a case is genuinely complex, fixed braces will usually give a better final result than any removable alternative.
The trade-off is visibility and cleaning. They are on your teeth for the duration and they need proper brushing around the brackets, because plaque left sitting against enamel causes permanent marking. We will show you how, and our hygienist can help if you are finding it difficult.
Treatment typically runs eighteen months to two years, with an adjustment appointment every six to eight weeks.
Book a consultation to find out what would suit you.
How much do metal braces cost?
Fixed metal braces are usually the most affordable way to get a properly corrected bite, and for complex cases they often represent the best value of any option, because they can achieve movements that would take far longer by other means.
The exact fee depends on the complexity of your case and whether one or both arches need treatment. We will give you a written plan and a firm figure at your consultation, with nothing added afterwards.
Payment can be spread monthly, interest free, over the course of treatment, or paid in full at the start for a 5% discount. Orthodontic treatment is tax deductible at 20% and we will provide your completed MED 2 form. The fee covers the appliance, all routine and emergency visits, your first retainers, and retainer checks for a year after the braces come off.
Book a consultation at our Dundrum clinic.
The Process
A proper look at your teeth, bite and jaws, and a conversation about what is actually bothering you. We take your dental and medical history, examine you, and take whatever records are needed, which may include X-rays, photographs and a digital scan with our iTero.
You leave knowing what we have found and what the realistic options are, including leaving things alone where that is the right answer.
We review the X-rays, photographs and scan alongside the examination findings and put together a plan specific to you. It sets out the appliance we recommend, how long treatment should take, the fee, and any preparatory work needed first.
This is a two-way appointment. We go through the alternatives, including doing nothing, and answer whatever you want to ask before you decide anything.
Anything that needs sorting before treatment starts. Usually that means a dental cleaning and dealing with existing decay or gum disease with your own dentist, since moving teeth in an unhealthy mouth makes matters worse.
In some cases it also means creating space, either by reducing the width of teeth very slightly or, where crowding is severe, by removing a tooth.
The brackets are bonded to your teeth and the wire is fitted. Nothing is drilled and no anaesthetic is needed, so the appointment is only uncomfortable in the sense of keeping your mouth open for about an hour.
Expect the teeth to feel tender for three or four days afterwards. You go home with wax for any bracket that rubs, and we go through cleaning before you leave.
You come in every six to eight weeks, usually for about twenty minutes. We change the wire, replace the elastics, check the teeth are tracking to plan and adjust where they are not.
These visits are also where we check your cleaning. Plaque left sitting around a bracket marks the enamel permanently, so it is the part worth staying on top of.
The brackets and wire are taken off and the adhesive is cleaned from the tooth surface. It is quick, painless, and usually the appointment people look forward to most.
We scan your teeth the same day, so your retainers fit the position they are in right now rather than where they were a fortnight ago.
Teeth drift back towards where they started if nothing holds them, so retainers are the final stage of treatment rather than an optional extra. Most patients wear a clear retainer at night long term, often alongside a fine wire bonded behind the front teeth.
Retainer checks are included for a year after the braces come off. There is more on our retainers page.
Book a Consultation
Discuss your goals with one of our specialist orthodontists to find out what treatment option suits you best.
FAQs
Fees vary widely between practices and between cases, so any figure quoted online is a guess until someone has looked in your mouth.
What moves the number is the complexity of the case, the appliance chosen, whether both arches are treated and how long it takes. Metal fixed braces are generally the most affordable route to a corrected bite. Ceramic braces and clear aligners sit above them.
We give you a firm written figure at your consultation at our Ballinteer Road clinic, with nothing added later.
Twice a day at minimum, ideally after every meal, and give it a proper two minutes.
Angle the brush to clean above and below each bracket separately rather than sweeping across the middle, and follow the gum line all the way round. Interdental brushes get under the wire and between the teeth where a normal brush cannot reach. A water flosser helps but does not replace brushing.
This is the part that decides whether you finish with clean teeth or permanent white marks. Our hygienist will go through it with you if it is slipping.
Not in the way people fear. Fitting braces is not painful at all, since nothing is being drilled or injected.
What you get afterwards is tenderness, starting a few hours later and lasting three or four days. Teeth feel bruised and biting into anything firm is uncomfortable. The same happens more briefly after each adjustment.
Soft food and ordinary painkillers deal with it. It settles, and it does not come back in the same way later in treatment.
For most people, yes, though the reasons are worth being honest about.
The health case is real: straighter teeth are easier to clean over decades, and a corrected bite spreads chewing forces evenly instead of wearing particular teeth. Where there is a deep bite, a crossbite or a large overjet, treatment prevents damage that would otherwise accumulate.
Where teeth are mildly irregular and the bite is sound, it is a cosmetic decision, and that is a perfectly legitimate reason too. We will tell you which of those situations you are in.
Sometimes, subtly, and usually for the better. The clearest changes come where the front teeth were markedly protruding or the bite was deep, because lip support and profile shift as those are corrected.
Where extractions are part of the plan, the profile can flatten slightly, and that is something we consider deliberately rather than by accident.
What braces do not do is reshape the jawbone or sharpen a jawline. Anything claiming otherwise is overselling. Real skeletal change requires surgery or, in children, appliances that influence growth.
Read what our patients say about us
"I went to so many dentists about my bite problem only to be dismissed. Dr Adriana and her team gave me a plan, I followed it, and two and a half years later I can smile, eat and bite properly."
"Two of my daughters had braces fitted by the lovely Dr. Katherine Condren. I would highly recommend her services, she was so good with my daughters, we are extremely happy with the service received and they both have beautiful smiles now."
"My bonded retainer came loose and several other practices turned me away. Dundrum Orthodontics saw me straight away and had it fixed within minutes."
"Dr Joseph O’Connor is such a skilled orthodontist. His kindness and attention to detail is outstanding. He takes the time to explain everything and makes you feel very comfortable. Could not recommend him more."
"I got Invisalign here in my forties and could not be happier. My daughter had braces with them a few years ago, and my sister brought her daughter on my recommendation. Exceptional service and amazing results."
"Joseph is a kind, compassionate and skilled orthodontist. He has a beautiful patient manner and his attention to detail is second to none. Highly recommend."
"Coming to the end of my braces and I couldn't be happier. The whole team are friendly and professional, and they take their time to make sure the end result is exactly what you want."
"I had a great experience with Dr O’Connor and his team. Booking was simple and they were very friendly & efficient throughout. Would highly recommended."
"My son got his braces off this morning and I am delighted with the result. Over two years, any worries we had were sorted and every question answered, always with a friendly and professional approach."
"Amazing service, highly professional. Dr O'Connor was really kind and knowledgeable. Would highly recommend!"
"Dr O'Connor is a brilliant orthodontist, the consultation was thorough and he's easy to talk to."
"Extremely happy with the outcome after braces, great attention to detail! Highly recommend."
"A long and difficult process was made easy by their care and attention. The attention to detail and professionalism was second to none."
"The staff are extremely skilled as well as friendly and easy to talk to. I am very happy with my results and with how the whole process was handled."
Begin Your Journey
Thinking about it? Book your first consultation and come see us — we'll take it from there.
