A Debonding Memento for Patients

Debonding day is a special day for any patient. Many orthodontists present their patients with mementos such as before-and-after pho­tographs or models, but the appliances them­selves are generally disposed of after removal. After several requests from patients to keep their braces, we came up with a novel way of present­ing them (Fig. 1).

Once the appliances are removed (usually with the archwire still in place), they are placed in a disinfecting solution. The archwire and brackets are then positioned in the desired con­figuration on a circular piece of .060" or .080" surgical splint material. A few dabs of clear adhe­sive will hold the appliances in place.

Several holes are drilled in the splint mate­rial to allow sufficient airflow for vacuforming. A thin .040" mouthguard material is then vacu­formed over the splint, trapping the wire and brackets. If desired, the "face" can be further customized by drawing hair or other features on the splint material prior to vacuforming.

Adding slight indentations along the edge of the splint material or drilling larger airholes can improve retention of the mouthguard mater­ial if that proves to be a problem. If no base is desired, a thinner splint material (such as .020") can be used; in that case, the mouthguard mater­ial will not lock around the edges and can easily be peeled off.

We have found this gift to be easy to fabri­cate, and it leaves patients with a memento of the practice that is bound to be a topic of conversa­tion with friends and family.