A Comparison between Hawley and Acrylic-Free Retainers (A clinical trial)

Abstract

A new type of orthodontic retainer (Sarhan acrylic-free type) was compared to the conventional Hawley retainer. Fixed appliance treatment using metal brackets was completed for thirty orthodontic patients. Then each patient wore each type of retainer for one month and the patient’s and orthodontist’s remarks were noted and analyzed. Seventy percent of the patients were more comfortable with retainers than their previous fixed appliances especially those who wore the acrylic-free retainers. The main reason for their comfort was improved esthetics (85.7%). Generally, the patients were more comfortable with the acrylic-free retainer than the Hawley type because it caused less interference with speech and less soft tissue impingement and was easier to clean. However, the acrylic-free retainer had a number of limitations including interference in deep bite cases and difficult construction procedure.