Damon braces – metal self-ligating brackets
Mon, May 12, 2008
As I mentioned before in another article, the metal braces can be of 2 main categories: the braces with brackets that have their own system to connect to the archwire (self-ligating) and the ones that need ligatures to do this. This article will present the self-ligating bracket braces; the best known being the Damon braces.
These are still metal braces, but with a revolutionary ligating system, excellent results and in many cases no need for extractions. The system was created by the orthodontist Dwight Damon.
In many cases for the adults who cannot wear palatal expanders (it’s useless since they are no more kids so their bone structure now is final) extractions are needed. When the teeth are too big for the small mouth, the only way to make them “fit” is to extract some (usually the first pre-molars are extracted thus leaving enough space that will not show. The Damon System doesn’t require extractions all the time since it can solve the problems without any teeth being pulled.
In my case for instance extractions were needed since my teeth were way too large for them to fit. In this case the Damon braces needed these extractions too so that they can arrange the teeth properly. It all depends on your personal case and the way your orthodontist sees your treatment.
The good thing about the Damon braces is they no longer need those colourful ligatures. Sure, they can be cute, but why use them if we can do without? This is what Damon thought when he implemented the “sliding-doors” system on the brackets that close and open with no external help from ligatures.
The Damon braces have their brackets smaller (there are already some partially ceramic ones) and they look pretty good. I haven’t worn braces on all teeth, but I saw many patients who were fully braced and their braces really looked nice. The small stainless steel brackets looked like small silver jewels on their teeth.
And, if you want a funny aspect: they do attract the magnet. Yeah, I tried it too 
Here are some of the advantages of the Damon braces:
- the brackets are smaller and look pretty nice
- no ligatures mean less chances to catch all that food in there
- they work faster and the results are sometimes astounding (in my case I had an incisor move 7 mm in just 4 months)
- it’s a new system and it’s getting improved constantly.
The disadvantages now, sure we have them too:
- they are still metal braces and offer you that “metal mouth” look
- the treatment is more costly than in the “classical” braces case
- the orthodontists need to be accredited to use the system. For a list of them, please consult the official DAMON site.
- the treatment can be painful in the first days, you’ll also have mouth sores (treatable with dental wax).
Still the Damon System is a great idea if you want to have a good metal braces orthodontic treatment. I used them for just 7 months in preparation for the Invisalign treatment, but the results were just amazing.
Tags: Damon braces, metal braces
July 12th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
I have damon braces and they just hurted during the first week, but now it’s been 3 months since and i haven’t expirience any pain at all, not even when they adjust them. And my friends who have normal braces are complaining all the time that it hurts.
So i think damon braces are a great option
July 13th, 2008 at 4:00 am
Hello Leslie and thank you for coming to our blog.
I also had some very bad days in the first week, but afterwards it was pretty OK. The normal braces may hurt some more since they are bulkier and they also have those ligatures that might prove harder on the teeth. Still both systems are OK since the results are the ones we have in mind.
Should I have to chose between the 2, I’d chose Damon once again because of the clear advantage.
July 19th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
i still havent decided which braces i want 2 get, but i was wondering if metal ligatures were harder 2 clean than the coloured rubber ones?
July 22nd, 2008 at 6:51 am
Hello Zak.
There is no such thing as metal ligatures, you have rubber ligatures for “regular” braces and nothing for Damon. The Damon System uses something called “sliding doors”, the brackets have the option of closing on the wire, you don’t need a ligature to “tie” them to the archwire. If you have the money I’d recommend getting Damon. It’s really good.
As far as cleaning is concerned, they are all hard since the food gets stuck in there. With good brushing, flossing with a special thread and also going for regular cleanings you’ll be just fine. Normally Damon is easier to clean since its brackets are smaller …
September 8th, 2008 at 11:18 pm
Wow! I wish I would have heard about Damon braces a month ago. My daughter just got an expander and partial braces. She also has to wear a mouth piece at night. In a few years she will need a full set of braces. I’m wondering if she could have skipped this expander step, and just done the Damon braces.
September 27th, 2008 at 6:28 am
I went to my orthodontist yesterday and told me i was going to have to have surgery to have my wisdom teeth out and then braces for about a year. When i remembered my friends who had had regular braces, they told them a year and they had them two. He gave me a brochure and it was for Damon braces, after studying up on the Damon Systgem I am very excited to be getting Damon braces intead of just regular braces. I’m not so excited about the wisdom teeth coming out though….
October 13th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Anne, only a specialist can tell if Damon would have saved her the hassle or not. Anyway, it’s good to be on the track with the treatment and, even if scary and with discomfort now, she’ll do just fine. I am keeping my fingers crossed
Siobhan, don’t worry about the wisdom teeth. Most of the time they are or can become an annoyance, so it’s good to just get rid of them.
Best of luck with the treatment and please keep us posted
October 21st, 2008 at 8:53 pm
All major orthodontic bracket companies have a self-ligating bracket on the market now. There is much anecdotal “evidence” about the Damon bracket that has been pushed by a huge marketing effort by the makers of the Damon bracket. Many in the orthodontic community feel that some of their claims are unsubstantiated and not backed up by scientfic proof. I and many of my peers believe it is the wire and not the bracket that is the major factor in treatment. If you see a commercial geared to the general public (ie Viagra, Cialis etc.) realize that it is a public company pushing its product on an uneducated public.
October 27th, 2008 at 3:49 am
so..its there differencess between the self ligating system with the damon? i keep wondering about that coz i had mine which is the self ligation system and it also had sliding door..i was finding it weird coz it do not had color on it thou…anyone to come out with some explanation..i am abit confused
October 27th, 2008 at 4:08 am
Hello Dr Straight and welcome to the blog. Thank you for the comments, it’s nice knowing more from the specialists.
In Romania Damon is already a “premium” system .. there are non-self-ligating systems and the ones I saw are horrible. The cheapest ones placed by orthodontists who don’t want to pay more for Damon (or a similar system), put these (which come very cheap for them) and in the end you pay over 3000 Euro for a “classical” system, more than you’d pay for Damon. These people don’t care about good or worse, they are in for some more cash.
I haven’t seen a similar system to Damon, I have worn Damon though and it’s been amazing. I have a friend who wears “normal” braces (with ligatures) and they are bulkier and unpleasant. Not to mention she has to go every 2 weeks to the ortho, while I would see him once a month.I had Damon 3 and was hugely pleased with them. Sure, now I like Invisalign more, but Damon did the trick fast and well.
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Apple: Damon and other similar systems is self-ligating. The small brackets have that small “door” and don’t need ligatures to tie them to the wire. The colour is given by those ligatures you don’t need anymore, this explains why the brackets are only “metal colour” and nothing fancy.
November 7th, 2008 at 2:14 pm
hi
I am 23 years old and have a very ugly teeth structure since my age 12.now after reading this article i am confusing in ‘ceramic’ and ‘metal’ braces. My doctor says you have to year ceramic braces for only 1 year.both demon or ceramic dosent matter.
Can you help what can i do?
December 16th, 2008 at 8:48 am
Most self-ligating brackets are going to be bulkier than non ligating brackets just because of the very nature of the bracket having a closing door mechanism. I have found breakage less of a problem with non-ligating and there is never a problem with gate mechanisms failing or being hard to open.
I don’t know the general orthodontic environment in Romania and what non-ligating brackets might be bulkier than self-ligating. I have posted an blog on this topic at http://www.askdrstraight.com. Look in the archives section.
Have a happy holiday!
January 5th, 2009 at 11:10 am
*Brace And I Want The LEAST NOTICABLE Brace As Possible
January 20th, 2009 at 7:02 pm
Glad Dr. Straight beat me to it. I’m afraid the Ormco marketing machine is impressive in its reach to the general public. But the fact is that Damon braces can’t do anything for you that a good orthodontist could not achieve with any other competing bracket system.
BraceyScared – the least noticeable are lingual braces – that is braces where the brackets are bonded to the lingual side of the teeth – that is, on the back. However, these are offered by far fewer orthodontists, and are generally significantly more expensive.
Other somewhat more cosmetic options would include ceramic brackets (such as Inspire ICE, Mystique or InVu) or certain brands of aesthetic self-ligating bracket (such as Clarity SL, or In-Ovation C)
Dmaon 3 are either half-metal, half ceramic (Damon 3) or all metal (Damon 3 MX) so are definitely not your very best choice if aesthetics are a major concern.
Find an orthodontist whom you like, and whose treatment plan makes sense to you, then ask what sort of aesthetic brackets hoices he can offer. When you head in for your consultations, you could also ask whether or not Invisalign might be suited to your case.
January 20th, 2009 at 8:50 pm
Oh, sorry I’d like to add one more comment. You said, “I have a friend who wears “normal” braces (with ligatures) and they are bulkier and unpleasant. Not to mention she has to go every 2 weeks to the ortho, while I would see him once a month”. However, I’d not tag either of these intervals as typical.
With conventionally tied braces, it’s not atypical at all to have appointments every couple of months, and I’ve heard of a few patients who have even longer intervals. Now, it’s true that in theory self-ligating braces do allow for a longer interval between appointments, since there are no rubber ligatures to weaken over time. And it’s true that some orthodontists do take advantage of this and see these patients only (say) every three months. However, other docs who use self-ligating brackets still see their patients more frequently than that, just to keep an eye on things, and also to give their patients a sense of contact, and of progress, and (let’s face it) make them feel like they are getting their value for money.
Anyway, my point here is that having to go in for adjustments every couple of weeks is definitely not a hallmark of treatment with non-self-ligating bracket systems.
January 26th, 2009 at 7:58 am
I just got Damon 3 MX braces put on today, and my dentist told me they will only be on roughly 4-8 months. I was not recommended for braces, but pushed it as a few teeth are crooked and I have a cross bite on one of my teeth.
My question is, is that time frame possible? It seems very short, and I’d rather not get my hopes up
January 30th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
A week ago i got the Damon Mx.
Are there the faster ones?
My smile now is not that bad… my orthodontist told me it would take about a year. Could that be true..?
Somebody toldme even if i clean my braces realy good, when they are off they will leave a mark on my teeth. I would probably need some whitening rigth?
Everybody does?
March 1st, 2009 at 9:29 am
Hi!My name’s rith. Rock is my nickname .m 20 years old.i live in Cambodia.I used2wear de classic braces since i was 15 years old. My doctor forced me to pulled out 4 of my teeth even i didn’t 12 but i must did it cos i have no way2choose!But after three years my treatment was unsucces. I felt very bad then.now my new doctor offer me2have de damon system.m thinking about it cos i d’n1 it 2 be unsucces again.i think damon system’s great but i still afraid. So should i do it?
Now my teeth look very bad!
September 29th, 2009 at 5:40 am
Damon braces- metal self- ligating brackets are still metal braces but it comes with a revolutionary ligating system, excellent results and even did not need any extractions. The orthodontist Dwight Damon creates it. Its mostly use by the adults who cannot wear palatal expander and extractions are needed. Without any teeth pulled out the Damon system can solve the problems. Sometimes it needs extractions on personal case according to the treatment of orthodontist. It look cutes without any colorful ligatures as there brackets are smaller; I have not wear it but came to know when others wear with the small stainless still looking like jewels on teeth.
Be careful while opening your mouth as it attract magnet…Lol.
Damon system is a good orthodontist treatment it just takes 7 months for the treatment and the result will come out perfect. The treatment is a bit costlier as compare with the classic braces but you can take up, there is a plan call free dental care that gives discount in every treatment.
October 15th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Hello! I would like to know if everyone has also had elastics with a damon 3 braces? I have them and it’s very painful and cannot find information about it. Please experiences…
October 21st, 2009 at 11:03 am
Heya
I’m 14 (nearly 15) and just had an orthadontist appointment today. I came back almost in tears because I realised how long I would need to wait to actually get them on. I still have 6 baby teeth (which are all being pulled out next week) and if the adult teeth fully come through in 9 months, I’ll get my braces on at last. Our orthodontist gave us the option of normal NHS braces (free) or the Damon braces (£3,000). Now, the damon ones are really expensive and I’ll feel so bad if my parents spend that much money on something that isn’t as great as it sounds. So honestly, will my smile look much different with the normal braces? I’m not too fussed about what I look like with braces on, I’ll have a metal mouth either way! But I just want to know if the outcome of the two will be different because I have VERY bad teeth and desperately want to get them sorted but I want to know if the Damon ones are really worth it??
Thanks
October 29th, 2009 at 6:50 am
I got damon 3 braces on 9 days ago and my teeth have already moved. My friends do not have them (I live in a city that offers it and they live in smaller towns) and we have compared the differences, it seems like my braces are much more convenient and comfortable…and less noticeable too. Truth be told though, I could care less what they looked like, I just want my teeth straight in a shorter amount of time, and it seems like I will.