Colonization of Streptococcus mutans on esthetic brackets: self-ligating vs conventional.

Introduction: Self-ligating orthodontic brackets rely on clips, rather than ligatures, to hold the archwire in place. It is unknown whether replacing ligatures with clips affects the adherence of Streptococcus mutans. The aim of this research was to evaluate whether self-ligating brackets have an advantage over conventional brackets as determined by the adherence of S mutans.