Aesthetic self-ligating orthodontic bracket

A self-ligating orthodontic bracket for coupling an archwire with a tooth, comprising:

• a ligating slide;
• a bracket body configured to be mounted to a tooth, said bracket body including an archwire slot and a pair of opposed guides supporting said ligating slide, said pair of opposed guides guiding said ligating slide for movement between an open position in which an archwire is insertable into said archwire slot and a closed position in which the archwire is retained in said archwire slot, at least one of said pair of opposed guides including a recess;
• and
• a resilient engagement member positioned to engage said recess when said ligating slide is in said closed position for constraining movement of said ligating slide relative to said bracket body.

An apparatus for coupling an archwire with a tooth, comprising:

• a bracket body configured to be mounted to a tooth, said bracket body including an archwire slot;
• a ligating slide carried by said bracket body for movement between an open position in which an archwire is insertable into said archwire slot and a closed position in which said ligating slide retains the archwire in said archwire slot, said ligating slide including a rear surface facing the tooth, a front surface opposite to said rear surface, and an aperture extending from said front surface to said rear surface;
• a resilient engagement member capable of engaging said ligating slide in said closed position for constraining movement of said ligating slide relative to said bracket body;
• and
• a tool including a shoulder and a tip projecting from said shoulder by a distance sufficient to deflect said resilient engagement member so that said ligating slide may be moved from said closed position to said open position when said shoulder contacts a portion of said ligating slide surrounding said aperture.

A self-ligating orthodontic bracket for coupling an archwire with a tooth, comprising:

• a bracket body configured to be mounted to a tooth, said bracket body including an archwire slot;
• a ligating slide carried by said bracket body for movement between an open position in which an archwire is insertable into said archwire slot and a closed position in which said ligating slide retains the archwire in said archwire slot, said ligating slide including a peripheral edge;
• and
• a deflecting element on said bracket body that deflects objects in a patient's oral cavity away from said peripheral edge when said ligating slide is in said closed position and said bracket body is mounted to the tooth.