Conventional metallic braces are one of the oldest and most commonly used types of braces. It consists of small stainless steel pieces called brackets. Each of these pieces contains a small slot in which the straightening archwire enters, while the archwire is fixed inside the slots by orthodontic ligatures or what is commonly known as rubber bands or tie

Brackets are attached to the teeth with the help of special dental cement, simply, with no pain, and without any need for anesthesia (and without the use of nails or screws, as some people may imagine).
The first appointment for placing the metal braces usually takes between half an hour to an hour, after which we do follow-up sessions every 4-6 weeks to remove the old rubber bands, replace the archwire with a larger wire if necessary, and fix it with new rubber bands. These periodic sessions usually take from 10 to 30 minutes each, and we call it “follow-up” appointments

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The fixed metal braces require special care from the patient, the food residues around the braces must be cleaned after each meal to protect the dental health and avoid tooth decay and gingival bleeding, and swelling. Patients should also be careful when eating, stay away from hard food items (Such as olive kernels, bone pieces, or hard bread), or those that stick to the teeth (such as toffee, caramel, or chewing gum), avoid opening the caps of bottles with the teeth and should avoid violent sports.

At the end of the treatment period, the metal braces are removed using special tools without any need for dental anesthesia, and with no pain. After that, the adhesive residues are cleaned from the teeth surface, so the tooth enamel outer surface usually returns to its normal shape after cleaning it, if there were no decay or deep staining around the braces due to the lack of care for the dental hygiene, as mentioned earlier.