Who Invisalign suits, and when braces serve better

Who is a good candidate for Invisalign?

Aligners suit many cases of crowding and spacing. The people they suit tend to have a few things in common:

• Their permanent teeth are in, whatever their age after that.
• The problem is crowding, spacing, a tooth that has drifted, or teeth that have moved since braces years ago.
• Their gums are healthy and their teeth are sound, or any problem is treated first.
• They will wear the aligners about 22 hours a day, out only to eat and to brush.

Invisalign for adults and teenagers

For adults, age is not the question. Healthy teeth can be moved at any adult age, and dental work you already have changes the plan but does not usually rule aligners out. A crowned tooth can still be moved, while an implant stays where it is and the other teeth move around it. Invisalign for adults goes into the details.

For teenagers, the permanent teeth need to be in first, and readiness is about the teenager as much as the teeth. One who wants straighter teeth and will look after something small and easy to lose is a good candidate. One who is being talked into it may do better with braces. Invisalign for teens covers the parent's side of it.

Can you wear aligners 22 hours a day?

This is the question that decides it, more than anything about your teeth. Aligners move teeth only while they are in, so they are worn about 22 hours a day: out to eat, out to brush, and in the rest of the time, including overnight.

Be honest with yourself about your days. Every meal and snack means taking them out, brushing or at least rinsing, and putting them back, and plain water is the only thing to drink with them in. Grazing all day or sipping coffee through the morning makes that much harder. It can still work, but only if you plan for it.

If you already suspect the aligners would spend their days in the case, braces may be the better tool, and it is fine to say so. Braces keep working whether or not anybody remembers them.

Healthy gums and teeth come first

Aligners move teeth through the bone, and they need healthy gums and sound teeth to do it. A cavity is filled first. If the gums are inflamed, or gum disease has cost some of the bone, gum disease treatment comes before any tooth is moved, because moving teeth in unhealthy gums can make the gum problem worse.

That is why the first visit includes a full look at your teeth and gums as well as the scan. It is worth the wait: once treatment is done, straighter teeth are easier to keep clean, because overlapping teeth trap plaque where a toothbrush struggles to reach.

When braces from an orthodontist would serve better

We offer Invisalign here, not braces, and some bites are better handled with braces. When yours is one of them, we will say so and refer you to an orthodontist rather than start something that will not finish well. The usual reasons are:

• Teeth that are badly turned, particularly rounded teeth that give an aligner little to grip.
• Teeth that have to travel a long way up or down.
• A tooth that is stuck in the bone and has to be brought into place.
• A bite where the upper and lower jaws themselves are out of line.

How to find out if Invisalign suits you

Start with a conversation and an exam here in Pearisburg, then an iTero scan: a small camera moved around your teeth for a few minutes, with no impression putty. From the scan, a plan is built showing how each tooth would move and where it would finish, and you see it before you agree to anything.

That is also where you find out if aligners are not the right tool for your bite, before you commit. If they are, the fee comes in writing after the scan. What Invisalign costs explains what decides it, and Invisalign compared with braces sets the two side by side.

Questions patients ask