Invisalign clear aligners

I think most people by now have heard, seen and/or tried the most advanced form of clear removable aligners; Invisalign. That’s right clear aligners! These clear form of orthodontics allows the wearer to be able to move, align and straighten their smile without the use of any wires on the teeth, with minimal invasive dental treatment! So, simply put, clear aligners that can move the teeth to create a straighter smile!

Invisalign Teeth Straightening – Kingswood Parks Dental & Skin Clinic (kingswoodparksclinics.co.uk)

Now this isn’t for everyone, but there are always options available that can help, including options such as other brands of clear aligners or even composite bonding to change the appearance of your teeth without changing the alignment. So if Invisalign isn’t for you then don’t worry there are alternatives.

So why isn’t Invisalign suitable for everyone?

A few things that may reduce the opportunity of having Invisalign includes over crowding, a heavy bite or heavily set back teeth. We highly recommend a cosmetic consultation with one of our clinicians to discuss the options and check for suitability. This can all be done by taking a few simple photos of the teeth and reviewing the bite, before getting a thumbs up for approval of Invisalign!

So what is the process for the treatment?

You can see your new smile from start finish with Invisalign and approve to commence with the treatment, this is great to be able to visualise your new smile! We always get questions asking how long the process takes and what the step by step appointments are, from the point of approving your new smile.

The process is relatively straight forward in terms of getting you to your new smile. It all starts with a cosmetic consultation with KP Clinics, where we can access your smile with a 3D digital scan and assess the changes you would like to make. We will do a full oral health screen; looking at your gums and teeth and establishing if your mouth is healthy enough for the cosmetic work. Don’t worry it’s not as bad as it sounds!! All clinical treatment (gum treatment, fillings and stability) would all be required prior to the cosmetic work to ensure you get the best results!

After this work has been done (if it’s needed) a treatment plan would be provided stating your appointments, costs and treatments required. Usually with Invisalign the first appointment would be what’s called the Clincheck stage. A video simulation of how many aligners are needed, the step by step of your treatment and the before and afters. Essentially allowing you to approve your new smile before you go ahead.

Once you have approved your new smile several x-rays would be taken in order to access your bone levels and make sure there are no impacted teeth or extra teeth erupting (this may be done prior if there is any cause for concern). Providing there are no concerns, your aligners are ordered and 2 weeks later you come for the fit appointment. With Invisalign, compared to other clear aligners, small attachments need to be placed on the teeth (these are small white bits of composite matched to the colour of your teeth) these act as tethers/anchors, to give direction when moving and aligning the teeth. The aligners are fitted and you are shown how to place on and off, depending on the period of time you are required to wear them. With Invisalign, the aligners are generally worn for approximately 22 hours per day for 7-10 day per aligner. Typically you may be looking at 20 aligners so that’s only 20 weeks of teeth straightening…..how amazing! Each appointment is usually about 4 weeks apart and you typically get 4 weeks’ worth of aligners at your appointment, allowing your clinician to monitor your transition!

There are also some stages that may need to be done throughout your treatment, which is known as IPR (intra proximal reduction). This is where the clinician takes a small amount of tooth tissue away (approximately 0.1mm each time) to make room for the teeth to move. So instead of removing teeth they opt to take minimal amounts to create space.

Your new smile!

After your final Invisalign aligners the clinician finishes your case by making some removable, and fixed retainers to keep the teeth in position. At this stage, we will also provide you with whitening gels to use in your retainers, meaning you get whiter straighter teeth!

Contact – Kingswood Parks Dental & Skin Clinic (kingswoodparksclinics.co.uk)