“How long will I actually be in braces?” That question comes up at almost every first visit. Part of the answer depends on which bracket system fits your case. LightForce is the one Brookhaven built specifically to shorten that timeline.
Dr. Kenneth Cohen-Sasson is an orthodontist at Brookhaven Orthodontics. He completed his residency at Tufts University. He uses LightForce for many of his cases. Every bracket is 3D-printed. Each one is custom-made for one specific tooth, in clear or white ceramic. That is different from a bracket pulled from a bin of standard sizes. Brookhaven states that its LightForce bracket system can cut treatment time by up to 24% compared with regular braces.
That number is not a generic industry claim. It is the figure Brookhaven puts on its own LightForce braces page. It is worth understanding what makes the bracket different before you decide if it is right for your case.
What to know before you ask about LightForce braces
- Every LightForce bracket is 3D-printed and custom-fitted to one specific tooth, in clear or white ceramic.
- Brookhaven states LightForce can shorten treatment time by up to 24% compared with regular braces.
- Preset bracket placement means fewer in-office adjustment visits over the course of treatment.
- LightForce is available to patients of any age at Brookhaven, not only kids or teens.
- Ask Dr. Cohen-Sasson or Dr. Cox at your visit whether your specific case is a good LightForce fit.
How a LightForce bracket actually gets made
Regular brackets come pre-formed in a handful of standard sizes. They get bent and adjusted to fit each tooth as treatment goes on. LightForce works in the opposite order: plan first, then build.
The digital plan comes before a single bracket exists
Dr. Cohen-Sasson starts with a digital scan of your teeth, not a physical mold. That scan becomes a 3D model. He uses it to map out your entire treatment plan on screen, tooth by tooth, before any bracket exists. The plan sets the exact angle and position each bracket needs. Dr. Cohen-Sasson sets the movement up front this way, instead of fixing it visit by visit.
3D printing replaces the one-size-fits-most bracket
Once Dr. Cohen-Sasson locks in the plan, a 3D printer builds each bracket from ceramic, shaped to match that one tooth’s exact surface. Even the base of the bracket, the part that bonds to your enamel, is custom to your tooth rather than a generic curve. Dr. Cohen-Sasson bonds the finished brackets in place using a placement guide from the same digital plan. Each bracket lands exactly where the plan designed it to go.
How much faster is LightForce treatment, really?
Brookhaven’s own stated figure is up to 24% shorter treatment, compared with regular braces. That is the number this practice stands behind for its own patients. A 2024 study in the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics found a similar pattern more broadly. Across several practices, patients treated with 3D-printed custom brackets averaged fewer total visits and shorter finishing visits than patients in regular brackets.
The reason is the same in both cases. A preset bracket needs fewer in-office fixes. If cost is part of your decision, Brookhaven also offers interest-free payment plans to help spread out treatment costs. It is worth raising at your visit, alongside the timeline question.
Dr. Cohen-Sasson sets the bracket placement before treatment starts, instead of adjusting it along the way. That is the plain reason behind the extra speed and the fewer office visits.
Is LightForce noticeable compared to metal or clear braces?
LightForce brackets come in clear or white ceramic. That sits closer to natural tooth color than regular metal brackets. They are not invisible the way a clear aligner tray can look, since a bracket and wire are still bonded to your teeth.
Compared with standard ceramic braces, patients often say the custom shape sits lower and smoother against the tooth. A 3D printer built each bracket for that specific tooth’s surface, instead of a generic curve stretched to fit.
Who is a good candidate for LightForce?
Brookhaven describes LightForce as a strong option for patients of any age, including adults who want a less noticeable option and patients who need re-treatment after earlier orthodontic work. A hard case does not rule it out on its own.
Dr. Cohen-Sasson and Dr. Cox make that determination case by case, at your initial exam, the same way they would for any bracket system. Want a realistic sense of your own timeline before that exam? A general braces timeline explainer on the practice’s blog walks through the factors that typically extend or shorten treatment, separate from which bracket system you pick.
LightForce can shorten your timeline. But how hard your bite is to fix at the start still matters more than the bracket type alone. Teens make up a large share of LightForce patients too, alongside adults and re-treatment cases, since the system works the same way once permanent teeth are in.
What day-to-day care looks like with LightForce brackets
Caring for LightForce brackets looks the same as caring for any fixed braces. You still brush after meals. You still avoid the same hard and sticky foods that can damage a bracket, like ice and taffy. You still wear a mouthguard for contact sports.
The main day-to-day difference patients notice is fewer trips back to the office. The preset placement needs fewer mid-treatment fixes than a standard bracket does, so adjustment visits come less often across the course of treatment. Most families see fewer trips out of school or work as a result.
Does LightForce feel different from regular braces?
Most patients describe the first few weeks as similar to any new braces: some soreness for the first few days as teeth start to move. Where LightForce tends to feel different is later in treatment. A 3D printer custom-builds each bracket for that tooth’s surface, so there is less bulk and fewer sharp edges than a standard bracket bent to approximate the same shape. That difference often shows up most around the gumline and between brackets, where a standard bracket can feel bulkier against your cheek and lip.
Dr. Cohen-Sasson’s background shapes how he uses the system day to day. He spent 12 years in private practice in South Florida. He then finished more training and moved to Atlanta to join Brookhaven in 2018. He now draws on that experience, plus his Tufts residency training, to plan LightForce cases with an eye toward the fewest adjustment visits a case genuinely needs.
Booking a LightForce visit at Brookhaven Orthodontics
If shortening your time in braces matters to you, LightForce is worth raising at your first visit. Brookhaven Orthodontics offers a free first visit at both the Brookhaven and Johns Creek offices. That first visit includes a panoramic X-ray, and you don’t need a referral to book it. Most first visits also include a simple look at cost and payment options, so you leave with a real sense of both the timeline and the price.
Call or text 404-343-0677. You can also visit the practice’s initial consultation page to see what to expect at your first appointment, and find out whether LightForce is the right fit for your case.
