Cfast stands for cosmetically focused adult straight teeth and is an orthodontic system designed to aesthetically correct the six anterior teeth or the ‘social six'. Due to the nature of the tooth movements, treatment time for majority of cases is 3-12 months and there is generally no disruption of the posterior occlusion. The short treatment time along with reduced enamel preparation as required with conventional restorative procedures offered by general practitioners makes this an ideal option for many adults looking to improve their smile.

Cfast can be considered one component of progressive smile design using the ‘ABC' approach to smile design;

• A – align with an orthodontic appliance
• B – bleach to whiten teeth
• C – correct with composite/ ceramic

The nature of the tooth movements as well as the ‘ABC' approach to smile design makes Cfast more suited to general practitioners rather than specialist orthodontists.

If you don't have any experience with Short Term Cosmetic Orthodontics click HERE to register for one of our hands–on courses.

If you're already a user of one of our competitors systems WELCOME! Just click HERE to get set up with an account and you can start submitting from today!

Becoming a Cfast provider is easy!

If you don't have any experience with Short Term Cosmetic Orthodontics click HERE to register for one of our hands–on courses.

If you're already a user of one of our competitors systems WELCOME! Just click HERE to get set up with an account and you can start submitting from today!

Cfast offers a wide range of appliances and diagnostic options to help you correct your patients smile.

Wondering which brackets to use? Check out our help topic Which bracket should I use?

All prices include return shipping and exclude GST.

Before you submit a case to Cfast, you'll need to collect all of your records, these records include:

• PVS impressions or intraoral scans
• 8 photos
• x-rays, and;
• a signed informed consent and agreement. You'll need to keep this agreement for your records. Don't send it with your case to Cfast.

When you have time to complete the prescription, navigate to provider.cfast.com.au and login using your username and password and click submit a case on the top menu bar.

Choose which doctor will be treating the patient and click next.

On the next tab, provide your patients information including name, sex and birthdate. You'll also need to select which arch we'll be treating along with the appliance type and bracket material if you're treating your patient with a fixed labial appliance.

We'll also need to know a little about the patient and how you'd like to correct their anterior appearance. Try to keep these instructions accurate and to the point.

When you click next, its time to upload your patient's photos. You can drag and drop photos directly into the upload box or you click the box to open a finder window. You'll need to provide us with 8 photos, these photos should include:

• Profile
• Portrait without the patient smiling
• Portrait with the patient smiling
• Labial
• Buccal left
• Buccal right
• Occlusal upper
• Occlusal Lower

If you don't have an occlusal mirror, visit shop.cfast.com.au to order one.

Once the photos are uploaded, click next and we can repeat this for the x-rays. Unlike photos, x-rays are not compulsory but help your technician design the treatment plan.

After clicking next, you'll need to let us know if the case will be based on impressions or intraoral scans. If you're submitting impressions, you'll need to send us PVS impressions. We wont be able to work with alginate or stone models.

If you're only treating one arch, we'll still need an impression of the opposing arch to ensure the treatment plan will work and the appliance won't interfere with the incisal occlusion.

Remember: Use disposable trays, we wont be shipping the impressions back with the finished case.

If you're sending us STL scans, select intraoral scans then drag and drop them into the upload box.

If you're sending us Trios scans, Select Trios scans and we'll know to look for them in our 3Shape communicate inbox.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PAYMENT

Once you've read and understood the terms and conditions, click next. If you're sending us PVS impressions, you'll need to print a packing slip and include it in your package when you send it. You can use any carrier service, however; if you click "order prepaid shipping labels" you can purchase prepaid courier satchels in lots of 10.

Once you've finished. Click "return to home". Your case is now submitted.

You'll notice the status of your case has changed to "Impression/Scan Rating" If your impressions or scans pass our quality control, you should receive your Treatment Plan in around 5 days.

Download it, review it, request a peer review or approve it and we'll get started on the appliance.

We (heart) information… As long as it relevant, well structured and easy to understand.

So that you get your treatment plan back right the first time, here are a few tips when filling out the online prescription.

The best way to complete the online prescription is short, direct requests written as dot points.

• Be direct e.g. "Close space between 1.1 & 2.1". Don't write, "Hi, Please close the space between the front teeth because the patient doesn't like it."
• Use correct dental terminology such as tip/tilt, translate, rotate, procline, retrocline etc.
• Don't tell us about the patient needs outside the scope of treatment.

Your technician will do their best to comply with your request whilst applying best practice and orthodontic principals. If there's any changes, we'll let you know when we send back your treatment plan.

For more information on communication, check out our topic Basic orthodontic terminology

To help your technician to design the best possible outcome for your patient, we'll need 8 photos.

You won't need a special camera, just as long as the photos are clear. For occlusal images it helps to have a mirror, if you don't already have an occlusal mirror you can get one from the Cfast store.

We'll need a single photo form these angles:

• Portrait (not smiling)
• Portrait (smiling)
• Profile (not smiling)
• Labial centric
• Occlusal upper
• Occlusal lower
• Buccal centric left
• Buccal centric right

These photos must be uploaded when you fill out your prescription online. We won't accept printed photos, emails or USB sticks sent in with impressions.

Remember: Whilst not compulsory, to save time uploading photos, try and keep their individual file sizes under 2MB. For more information on file sizes, consult your cameras instruction manual or contact the manufacturer or check out our topic Uploading photos and x-rays

When the minimum threshold of pressure is applied to the tooth, it triggers chemical messengers that trigger osseoclastic and osseoblastic activity that resorb bone on one side of the tooth and regenerate it on the other side. The amount of force required to initiate tooth movement is actually quite small and tooth movement starts around 3 days after commencing treatment.

Pain - Feeling some discomfort is normal and generally lasts 2-4 days when the appliance is first inserted and each time the appliance is reactivated or patient moves to the next ART set. It is also common for patients to develop small ulcers from the appliance rubbing on the lips or cheek. Comfort wax can be used to prevent it from rubbing.

Mobility - Due to the biological processes that take place during orthodontic treatment, moderate mobility is expected. Heavy forces can cause bone resorption leading to excessive mobility, if this occurs discontinue treatment and generally it will correct its self. The good news is that Cfast is designed so that exerting heavy forces is difficult. However, when using powerchain to close spaces this may possibly occur.

Root Resportion - External root resorption is common when treating with a fixed orthodontic appliances, however the short treatment time, lack of torquing movements and light pressure exerted by the Cfast appliance means that root resorption resulting in decreased root length is unlikely.

Communicating with your technician and colleagues on Cfast cases is best done using orthodontic terminology to ensure your message is simple and most importantly accurate.

Basic orthodontic terms:

• Tipping – The apex of the root remains and the crown is rotated in relation to the roots fixed axis.
• Translation - Moving the whole tooth through the bone, leaving the original angulation unchanged. This is a slow process and only used to close gaps.
• Intrusion – Pushing the tooth back into its socket
• Extrusion – Pulling the tooth towards the occlusion
• Rotation – Rotating a tooth on its long axis
• Torquing – Axis of rotation is the center if the CEJ and is only achieved using ART Appliances.

Patients often present with various complaints and criticisms of their smile, some of the indications for Cfast include:

• Correcting simple to moderate crowding
• Correcting simple to moderate spacing
• Rounding out the arches
• Improving gingival health
• Correcting rotations
• Aligning gingival margins and improving emergence profiles
• Uprighting teeth that are flared or tipped
• Pre-restorative cosmetic alignment
• Avoiding elective endodontics
• Correction of anterior crossbites

To increase your case success, it's a great idea to be mindful of the cases, which are not suitable to be treated with Cfast.

Overbites and Overjets
The main aim of Cfast is not to change the vertical or horizontal relationship between the teeth, however this may be a secondary result of treatment. If the patients main focus is on correcting increased/ reverse overjet, deep/open bite, it is unlikely they are suitable for Cfast.

Midline Shifts
It is difficult for people to identify a midline shift of anything less than 4mm as long as the central incisors are not tilted mesially or distally.

For more information on Cfast indications, check out our topic Indications for Cfast treatment

You wouldn't build a house on bad foundations. It's essential you make a great impression before submitting your case to Cfast.

We find the two-step technique is the best way to take a good impression, first using a heavy body material, then a light body material for the second stage of the impression.

Check out our How-to video "Make a great first impression."

Components of a good impression include:

• All gingival margins are defined and clear, including 2mm of buccual and lingual surfaces outside the gingival margin;
• Detailed and accurate occlusal surfaces;
• Distal surfaces of molars are intact;
• Impression material is intact, no damage, warping, or separation of heavy and light material, and;
• No bubbles, voids, thin walls, shifts or double imprints that compromise dental anatomy.

Save the hassle and possible inaccuracy of PVS impressions by submitting your cases via Trios.

Connecting your trios to Cfast is easy, remember; It's a good idea to get this of the way before seeing your first patient, allow yourself around 10 minutes to complete the set–up.

Just follow these 6 simple steps:

You'll still need to submit your prescription at provider.cfast.com.au, when you get to the "Impressions or scans" stage, just click "3Shape Trios" and we'll know where to look for your scans.

For information on how to submit a Cfast prescription, check out our topic Cfast prescriptions.

Save the hassle and possible inaccuracy of PVS impressions by submitting your cases based on intraoral scans.

Cfast accepts scans from most of the major scanner companies including; Carestream, iTero, E4D, Planmeca, 3M True Definition, Shining 3D and Condor.

Submitting a case using your open STL scanner is easy, just complete your prescription at provider.cfast.com.au. When you get to the "Impressions or scans" section; just select "Scans" and drag and drop your exported STL files into the upper and lower arch fields.

If you need help exporting your STL files from your scanner, you'll need to get in touch with your distributor's technical support team who will be more than happy to assist.

If you're a CEREC user, you'll have to wait a little longer until we're ready to receive your scans. Once we're ready we'll make an announcement.

For information on how to submit a Cfast prescription, check out our topic Cfast prescriptions.

For information on how to submit a Trios scan, check out our topic Connecting your 3Shape Trios scanner to Cfast.

At Cfast, we offer 3 bracket types, composite, ceramic and clear self-ligating.

By default Ceramic brackets are selected for their all-round function, you can select which bracket you'd like to use on a case–by–case basis as you submit your case online.

Each bracket has it's own benefits for use. When you submit your case online, you'll need to select which bracket type you'd like to use. To help in making this decision, check out the table.

	Clear Self Ligating	Ceramic	Composite
Treatment time	Up to 2/3 faster than ceramic or composite	Fast	Fast
Chair time	Low	Medium	Medium
Strength	Low	Medium	High
Resistance to staining	Low	High	Medium
Colour	Clear	Opacious off-white	Opacious off-white

Be conservative – most of the space will be gained as the arch rounds out and sometimes in the eagerness to achieve a quick result one can be overly aggressive with IPR leading to spacing that subsequently needs to be closed.

Do not do all the IPR on the first visit – allow the rounding out effect to take place. This is where most of the space will be gained. Carrying out too much IPR initially invariably leads to unwanted spacing as treatment progresses.

Spread the IPR throughout the anterior region – do not just carry out IPR where there is crowding. Usually it is best to start where there is no crowding and as treatment progresses there will be a "domino effect" as teeth "shuffle" into place around the arch.

If you've requested a treatment plan, we'll show you where the IPR will need to be performed and how much is required.

If you chose to proceed without requesting a treatment plan, IPR might be a little more difficult; you'll need to follow the three keys to successful IPR below.

Unless indicated in the treatment plan; the basic rule to remember is, "Carry out IPR throughout the anterior region progressively and conservatively until either the crowding has resolved or no more IPR can be conservatively carried out."

Clean the teeth with pumice or oil free prophylactic paste and rinse thoroughly. Alternatively you can sandblast.

• Place cheek retractors
• Try trays in for fit and then be sure clean well
• Begin on upper right quadrant
• Place cotton roll in buccal sulcus and over anterior teeth
• Etch the enamel only where the brackets are likely to be bonded
• Rinse etchant and dry enamel and Change cotton rolls if required
• Apply dental adhesive to the teeth, air thin and cure
• In Placement tray for upper right arch place a small amount of dental adhesive only on all brackets and thin with air
• Place small amount of flowable composite on each bracket
• Firmly seat placement tray for upper right quadrant (be sure tray is firmly seated)
• Put curing light over tray on central incisor and press firmly while curing for 5 seconds
• Cure each subsequent tooth for 5 seconds ensuring pressure is applied to hold bracket firmly against tooth
• Then go back over to central and fully cure for 10-20 more seconds and work back to first molar
• Remove hard outer tray
• ‘Peel' off soft tray and confirm proper placement and positioning of the bracket

Repeat on the upper left, then lower left and lower right quadrants if applicable

Bite Stop Placement:
Bite stops are composite ledges that are bonded onto the palatal surface of two upper anterior teeth or molar teeth. Their main purpose is to stop patients from biting onto and dislodging brackets –especially when lower arch is bonded. They may not be required in upper arch only cases.

• Where the bite is deep place bite stops anteriorly
• Where the bite is shallow place them ideally on 2nd molars or both 1st and 2nd molars if there is no bracket in the 1st molar.

Additionally:

• Bite stops should not open bite excessively –just clear of brackets
• Will open up bite posteriorly thus causing a degree of over-eruption
• Patient tolerance will be variable –therefore ideally advise in advance
• Remove after 2-3 months –usually will have some degree of posterior contact by this time

Check out our How-to video "Fitting labial brackets."

The patient should be rescheduled every 4 weeks after the appliance has been fitted. The procedure for review appointments is as follows:

• Place the cheek retractor
• Remove o-rings and wire from brackets
• Any lost or loose brackets will need to be replaced
• Depending on crowding or spacing, give appropriate treatment
• Decide if wire needs to be changed
• Attach wire with o-rings and any other components to address what was identified in step four
• Check bite stops
• Check oral hygiene

A bracket debonding is not uncommon; you'll almost certainly experience this. The important thing to remember is not to panic. Don't forget to tell your patient not to panic either. Sure, missing or loose brackets are an inconvenience, but they're not an emergency.

Brackets debonding are usually caused by excessive force on the wire caused by complex movements or damage caused by food. Either way, it's an easy problem to fix.

• Remove excess composite from tooth surface with a fine polishing diamond, stone or appropriate polishing disc being careful not to damage the underlying enamel.
• Choose the appropriate bracket from your spares kit.
• Etch and bond centre of tooth, air thin, cure. Then place some flowable composite on the fitting surface of the selected bracket and, using the above guidelines, seat the bracket in center of tooth.
• Use orientation dots on bracket to ensure it is correctly placed.
• Cure composite. Remember, you'll always need to cure each bracket for the curing time indicated in the material handling instructions provided by the composite manufacturer.
• Re-ligate wire.

One of the most frequently asked questions is, "when do I change the wires." The answer is very simple, only change up to the next size of wire when it is easy to do so.

If you are in a 0.014" wire and decide now is the time to change to the 0.016" wire, and in doing so find that it is difficult to fully engage all the bracket slots without using lots of metal quick-ties, then you've rushed it. Just return to the smaller wire until treatment has progressed to the stage where the next size of wire is easy to engage. That's it – simple!

Remember; there is no rush to get up to the larger wires. As long as there is pressure on the periodontal ligament and there is room to move, you'll get tooth movement.

Patients presenting with spacing anteriorly that they want to close present a relatively easy challenge to take on. All you need is Overjet!

The primary tool for closing spaces is powerchain - a chain of linked o-rings that act as an elastic to pull the teeth together. It is used instead of the o-rings normally used to ligate the wire. If you're using clear self ligating brackets, just sequence the wire as normal, then use the powerchain over the brackets as if they were standard brackets.

• Firstly, cut two links of powerchain and place them between the two central incisors.
• Once the centrals have come together (which could take a few months depending on the spacing) cut four links of the powerchain and engage the four incisors – lateral incisor to the opposite lateral incisor.
• Once the lateral incisors are in contact with the central incisors, cut 6 links of powerchain and place from canine to canine until these are finally in contact with the lateral incisors.

To prevent the mesial drift of premolars, remember you can tie them to the wire and each other with quickties.

The downside to this procedure is that there may be residual spacing distal to the canines which needs to be discussed with the patient at the outset.

At Cfast, we limit our ART cases to minimum and maximum of 6 active aligners. If the case requires more than 6 aligners, it's probably not suitable for Cfast ART and your technician will let you know when they send back the treatment plan with their recommendations.

Whilst we take the greatest care to ensure our aligners are free from sharp areas, sometimes patients may still feel some discomfort.

This patient complaint is easy to fix, just follow the simple steps below.

• Use a small rubber wheel to polish the edge of the aligner near the sore spot.
• If pain persists, cut the edge of the aligner with surgical scissors so that it no longer covers that area of tissue and polish the edge with a small rubber wheel.
• Once the area heals, the next set of aligners shouldn't cause any discomfort.

This generally isn't a problem.

ART aligners are made in the future position of the teeth for that set. This means that the aligner can't possibly fit well upon first insertion.

Typically, the first set of ART aligners will fit poorly for the first 2 days of wear, then; will progressively fit better and better towards the end of the two-week wear schedule. When the patient moves on to the next set, the initial discomfort will be less than that of the first set.

If you have one or two teeth that have an incisal gap, this means you'll need to use an elastic to extrude that tooth before moving on to the next set of aligners.

For information on extruding teeth with elastics, check out our topic Extruding teeth with elastics

This technique is essential in all ART cases where a tooth needs to be extruded.

You'll need resin cement, flowable resin, orthodontic bracket, metal orthodontic button, and an elastic band.

If you follow these steps, you'll have that tooth down in no time!

1. Using a coarse sandpaper disc or rubber polisher, roughen enough area on the tray to place an orthodontic bracket on the facial gingival 1/3 of the tooth to be extruded.
2. Prepare a mixture of resin cement and place a small amount onto a bracket.
3. Place the ceramic bracket on the roughened area of the ART tray. Adjust as needed, then wait 2-3 minutes for the resin cement to set.
4. Using a tungsten carbide bur, start at the top of the tray on the lingual side and cut a space to clear the bracket, leaving room for the tooth to extrude.
5. Remove the temporary anchor from the tooth to be extruded.
6. Etch the tooth to be extruded on the lingual side.
7. Rinse the acid and dry with the air/water syringe.
8. Bond the metal bracket with a composite resin recommended for bonding orthodontic brackets.
9. Break contact on the mesial side of the tooth being extruded using a metal diamond strip, then break contact on the distal side the same way.
10. Insert tray and place the elastic over the facial bracket (on the tray) and the lingual bracket (on the tooth).

It is important to let the arch round out first before any IPR is performed, as space will be created when the arch rounds out. If more room is required, then conservatively perform IPR throughout the anterior region or where indicated in the treatment plan.

Only when the bonded retainer has been fitted should the appliance be removed. Leave all the wires, O-rings, etc. in place and remove as one piece by pinching the bracket as close to the tooth as possible with a pair of bracket removers. Remove excess composite and polish until a smooth enamel surface is achieved. Take a set of PVS impressions and send them to the lab for a removable retainer to be made.

For information on how to submit a retainer request, check out our topic Requesting a retainer.

Having trouble uploading photos or x-rays? It's probably because the files are too large or your internet connection is too slow. Either way, we've got a few solutions to work with what you have.

Here's a few ways you can reduce your file size.
A good image or x-ray file size is around 1-2Mb any smaller and we can't see too much, any larger and it'll take too long to upload.

On a Mac OSX Yosemite onwards

• Open the files in the "Preview" application.
• Go to "File" then click "Export"
• At the bottom of the export screen, drag the quality slider down to reduce the file size.
• Click "Save"

On Windows 7 onwards.

• Open the files in the "Paint" application.
• Click "Resize"
• Change the horizontal and vertical dimensions from 100% to between 30-50%
• Click "Save"

If you are not using these operating systems or applications, just google or search on YouTube "reducing image file size" and try the instructions provided.

Intraoral scan file sizes.

Intraoral scans range in size from 5-50Mb per arch, unfortunately we can't compromise on scan quality, you'll just have to wait for it to upload.

Here's a few ways you can improve your connection speed.

Firstly after confirming there are no applications running which are downloading content, visit a connection speed testing site such as OOKLA (http://www.speedtest.net) and perform a speed test by clicking "begin test". Don't forget to write down your upload and download speeds to compare later.

If you're on ADSL2+

• Disconnect the power from your modem for a minimum of 20 seconds then reconnect the power.

If you're using a HFC cable modem

• Disconnect the power from your modem for a minimum of 20 seconds then reconnect the power, once reset and reconnected,
• Without turning off the modem, unscrew the coaxial cable from the wall socket for a minimum of 20 seconds then reconnect it.

If you're using a 4G modem</p>

• Switch off the modem and switch it back on, and;
• Check reception is greater than 50% and move modem accordingly to increase reception.

If you're on NBN

• Disconnect the power from your modem for a minimum of 20 seconds then reconnect the power.

Once you've completed these steps, wait for your internet to reconnect and perform the speed test at OOKLA (http://www.speedtest.net) and compare your results.

An acceptable upload speed should be between 0.5 Mbps - 1.0 Mbps. If your result is lower than 0.5Mbps you should contact your ISP to discuss possible line faults.

Need help uploading photos or x-rays? we've got a few ideas to make this easier for you.

Here's a few tips to make uploading photos and x-rays easier.

• Know where your photos and x-rays are before you start submitting the case. We suggest creating a folder for each patient and dragging all of your case photos and x-rays into it. When it comes to uploading them, just drag and drop them from the folder.
• Be neat. This goes without saying! If you rename your image and x-ray files with the patient's name, you'll never have trouble finding them. Don't worry about going back and changing all existing files, just start today and see it through your new cases. (see example below)
  n this example, your patients name is Frank Grimes, the photo was taken before treatment and the buccal right occlusion is shown in the image. All the date information will be done by your computer so there's no need to add it in the file name.

Here's a few ways you can reduce your file size.

Slow internet? You can make the uploading process much faster if you reduce the image size before uploading. A good image or x-ray file size is around 1-2Mb, any smaller and we can't see too much, any larger and it'll take too long to upload.

On a Mac OSX Yosemite onwards

• Open the files in the "Preview" application.
• Go to "File" then click "Export"
• At the bottom of the export screen, drag the quality slider down to reduce the file size.
• Click "Save"

On Windows 7 onwards.

• Open the files in the "Paint" application.
• Click "Resize"
• Change the horizontal and vertical dimensions from 100% to between 30-50%
• Click "Save"

If you're still having trouble uploading photos or x-rays, check out our help topic Slow uploading photos or x-rays OR contact your system administrator.

Check out our help topic Submitting a new case and watch the video

A retainer is essential at the end of every treatment to prevent orthodontic relapse.

Cfast offers two types of retainers:

• Fixed retainers are permanently bonded to the lingual and palatal surface of the anteriors.
• Removable retainers are worn 24 hours for the first year and then only at night after the first year.

It's always a good idea to combine both fixed and removable retainers for added protection because, only a fixed retainer can provide round the clock protection against relapse, without the need to rely on patient compliance. This is because they're permanently bonded to the lingual and/or palatal of the anteriors.

To order retainers, just log onto your account HERE then click the "Request a Retainer or Revision" button on the top right hand corner of the page and follow the 7 steps in ordering your retainers.

For instructions on bonding a fixed retainer, click HERE.

So you've finished treatment and are ready to order your retainers. Before starting you'll need to collect all of your records, these records include:

• PVS impressions or intraoral scans and 8 photos.

When you're ready to complete the retainer order, navigate to provider.cfast.com.au and login using your username and password and click "request a retainer or refinement" on the top menu bar.

From the drop down menu, select which patient you'd like to request the retainers for.

After clicking next, select the treating doctor and click next.

By default, we've preselected the arches treated and removable retainers.

You can order additional sets of retainers for $50, If you'd like 3 additional sets, just enter a 3 in this field.

We give you the option to add additional notes but they're not essential.

Next you'll need to provide us with your "after" photos. You can drag and drop photos directly into the upload box or you click the box to open a finder window. You'll need to provide us with 8 photos, these photos should include:

• Profile
• Portrait without the patient smiling
• Portrait with the patient smiling
• Labial
• Buccal left
• Buccal right
• Occlusal upper
• Occlusal Lower

Once you've clicked next, you'll need to let us know if the case will be based on impressions or intraoral scans. If you're submitting impressions, you'll need to send us PVS impressions. We wont be able to work with alginate or stone models.

Remember: Use disposable trays, we wont be shipping the impressions back with the finished case.

If you're sending us STL scans, select intraoral scans then drag and drop them into the upload box.

If you're sending us Trios scans, Select Trios scans and we'll know to look for them in our 3Shape communicate inbox.

Once you've clicked next, it's time to review the order, pay by credit or account and review the terms and conditions, click submit.

If you're sending us PVS impressions, you'll need to print a packing slip and include it in your package when you send it. You can use any carrier service, however; if you click "order prepaid shipping labels" you can purchase prepaid courier satchels in lots of 10.

Once you've finished. Click "return to home". Your case is now submitted.

You'll notice the status of your case has changed to "Impression/Scan Rating" If your impressions or scans pass our quality control, you should receive your completed order in around 10 days.

As mentioned in the retainers topic, a retainer is essential at the end of every treatment to prevent orthodontic relapse.

Only a fixed retainer can provide round the clock protection against relapse without the need to rely on patient compliance because they're permanently bonded to the lingual and/or palatal of the anteriors.

Here's how to bond them:

• It's always a good idea to start fresh, so make sure there is no calculus.
• Try the retainer in and take a mental note of where the wire runs across the teeth.
• Apply etch and bond along the lingual and/or palatal of the anteriors taking care not to over etch the teeth.
• Insert the retainer and apply flowable composite.
• Cure and clean up excess.
• Using a fine diamond bur, trim the ends of the wire connecting to the insertion jig.
• Remove and discard the insertion jig.
• Check occlusion and adjust composite if required.