Metal Mouth Message Board

Anyone else gone through overcorrection stage?

No refinements needed for bottom (using final tray as a retainer) and a whopping 15 refinement trays. After regular treatment, my ortho wanted to pull down one of my front teeth (it was a little higher than my other front tooth) and overcorrect it so right now one of my front teeth hangs a little lower than the other one. He said to wear this top tray full time for 6 weeks then nighttime only for 2 weeks and see where the tooth is at by then.

What's the deal with overcorrection, anyway? Do you go into the retainer phase with over corrected teeth? I'm concerned about shifting but also don't want to jump into retainers with an overcorrected tooth! Perhaps 2 weeks nighttime only will relapse them a little bit so I'm ready for retainers. Fingers crossed!

Let's clarify the terminology:

Overcorrection aligners are aligners designated with a '+' sign, usually with 3 sets of these after the regular final aligner. They can be used to increase the rotation of the teeth and close some residual spaces.

Some doctors overcorrect rotations and other movements in the regular or refinement aligners because they expect to not get 100% expression of the movement they have asked for. Your retainers should retain your teeth in the correct position rather than in an overcorrected one.

Furthermore, there is no designated number of refinement aligners. Refinement is simply a 2nd set of aligners and there can be a 3rd or 4th required. It is not a failure of the treatment by any means to require refinement, and our treatments are often planned with them in mind.