To assess gingival health and predictors of relapse related to braided-wire bonded retainers after the active phase of comprehensive orthodontic treatment.
Fifty-one subjects were recruited in a prospective study of whom 42 were available for analysis after 2 years of retention (pre-therapeutic ages 11–18 years; 66% female). A rectangular wire retainer (0.027 × 0.011″) was bonded to the mandibular incisors. Little’s index of incisor irregularity; intercanine width; the accumulation of biofilm, calculus and gingivitis; and the incidence of retainer detachment, were recorded. Subjects were examined before orthodontic therapy, upon therapy completion, and after 2 years of retention.
The incidence of retainer detachment over the 2 years was 27%. The post-treatment incidence of irregularity was 17%, and intercanine width reduction was 24%. Calculus accumulation increased significantly during retention (
Post-treatment changes in the mandibular arch incorporating bonded retainers were not large, but were common. An increase in mandibular incisor irregularity during retention is mostly related to treatment-induced intercanine width expansion. The bonded retainer often detached and increased calculus accumulation.