Ligature (tie)
A ligature, or tie, is the tiny rubber band, or sometimes very thin wire, that holds the orthodontic wire in a bracket’s slot, as the glossary of the American Association of Orthodontists defines it.
What holds the wire in the bracket slot: the AAO’s ligature entry
The Glossary of Orthodontic Terms of the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) defines the ligature as “A tiny rubber band, or sometimes a very thin wire, that holds the orthodontic wire in the bracket slot/brace.” The braces diagram on the AAO’s page about living with braces shows the same part holding the archwire to each bracket, in rubber band or twisted wire form.
The glossary’s Ligating Modules entry gives the rubber kind its other names, o-rings and o-ties, and describes it as “A small elastic o-ring, shaped like a donut, used to hold the archwire in the bracket.”
Ligature or elastic: two rubber bands, two jobs
A ligature is easy to confuse with an orthodontic elastic, because the AAO glossary calls both rubber bands. In the glossary’s definition, a ligature holds the wire to a single bracket. The glossary’s Elastics entry describes something else: “During certain stages of treatment, small elastics or rubber bands are worn to provide individual tooth movement or jaw alignment.”
So an instruction to wear rubber bands means elastics, which the AAO’s elastics page says patients place, remove and wear as their orthodontist prescribes; the ligatures stay on the brackets. Spacers, set between the molars before bands, are a third kind the glossary calls rubber bands.
Colored ties, clear ties and brackets with a door
Ligatures come up in treatment through their colors and their clear form. The glossary’s O-ring entry, for a tiny rubber band used as a ligature, says “O-rings come in a variety of colors, and are generally changed at each adjustment appointment.” On ceramic braces, the AAO’s page adds: “Some patients may also have tooth-colored wires or clear elastic ties, depending on their treatment plan and the orthodontist’s recommendation.”
Some brackets hold the wire without a ligature: the glossary’s Self-Ligating Brackets entry describes a door on the front of the bracket, so that “an elastic ring is not needed to hold the orthodontic wire to the bracket.” Which brackets and ties you have is part of your treatment plan; the practice’s metal and ceramic braces have their own page, and brackets and archwires are defined in the braces section of the glossary.
Sources
- American Association of Orthodontists, Orthodontic Glossary: Braces & Dental Terms Defined
- American Association of Orthodontists, Living with Braces: Food, Oral Hygiene, & Care Tips
- American Association of Orthodontists, What Are Ceramic Braces?
- American Association of Orthodontists, Orthodontic Elastics: Are They For You?
Which ligatures your braces would use: a question for your consultation
Write ligature or tie in your consultation request, with whatever you have been told about them.
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