Do you think that your choices of having straight teeth are slim? Perhaps you feel that you’ve ‘outgrown’ a visible brace and that metal braces will spoil the way your smile looks, causing social embarrassment during important meetings. Invisalign can be the solution. This orthodontic appliance helps to straighten your teeth using a series of clear, plastic aligners which fit snugly over each set of teeth and so can hardly be seen.

Here at Woodborough House we offer a free initial consultation in which we address your needs and concerns. If you decide to go ahead with treatment, you will come back in to the practice at a later date to have bite impressions made of your teeth. We then send the photos to Invisalign in the United States along with a set of precise instructions. Using advanced 3D computer imaging, a series of clear removable aligners are formed which could encompass as few as 12 or as many as 48 depending on your individual treatment plan.

During treatment

The aligners have to be worn for at least 22 hours a day and are only removed to eat and clean. You must not eat with them in and only water can be drunk while wearing them. To clean them just use a toothbrush and toothpaste and soak them in a solution called Retainer Bright which brightens the aligners. As the aligners are only plastic you must not submerge them in boiling water as this will distort them.

Treatment time should take an average of 18 months but it depends on each individual patient and their expectations.

After treatment

Once treatment is complete a retainer must be worn indefinitely as teeth are always moving and will drift back to their original position if not held by a retainer. There are options for retainers, as you can have a fixed retainer which is a wire cemented behind the teeth or a removable retainer which is just like the Invisalign retainers but stronger.

Invisalign has produced excellent results as even difficult teeth can be moved by attachments being bonded onto the tooth which then acts as a ledge for the aligners to push against to rotate the teeth into line.  The attachments are tooth coloured composite which is bonded onto the teeth and just removed at the end of the treatment.

Why Invisalign?

Choosing Invisalign is a great option if you don’t want your teeth to get in the way of your lifestyle. This is because it is virtually invisible and therefore people won’t be able to tell you’re wearing it unless you let them know. It’s also removable so you can still carry out your oral hygiene routine as normal and due to the fact there is no metal or wires involved, you will feel minimal discomfort. The plastic pushes teeth into a different position, which can make the teeth throb, however the feeling is minimal.

Another benefit of Invisalign is that you will have fewer appointments to attend as all the aligners are made at the same time, so a string of aligners can be dispensed to a patient simultaneously, as changing the aligners can be done at home.

No extractions are done either. Instead IPR is carried out, which is an interproximal reduction, where a very small amount of enamel is removed from between the tooth. This helps to create space for the teeth to be straightened and the process is completed within 2-3 minutes and is pain free.

If you’re interested in straightening your smile with Invisalign, why not give us a call on 0118 984 3108 where one of our friendly staff will be more than happy to help.