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What is Invisalign?

Invisalign is a unique dental alignment system that is designed to use personalized trays to slowly reallocate the teeth to their appropriate locations. It can be used to treat the very specific dental issues that are coming in the way of your confident and radiant smile. These complications are:

Mild to moderate dental misalignments

• Overbites
• Underbites
• Crossbites
• Open bites

Invisalign patients are necessarily required to wear their personalized trays for at least 20 hours every day to obtain the desired result as quickly as possible. If the patients adhere to their alignment treatment plan, then might be able to witness magical results in less than 6 months’ time.

Invisalign clear aligners are designed to fit your dental structures perfectly and assure to straighten your teeth with the hassle and the additional inconvenience of conventional and traditional metal braces. With their ever-increasing popularity, they have taken the orthodontic and dental treatment world by storm. But the question is, is the hype even worth it?

In this article, we will try to provide you with possibly extensive research so you can make an informed decision before opting for it. Whether you’re looking for a comfortable and a discreet way to straighten your teeth or want to achieve that dream smile, hang in here till the end to learn more if the Invisalign is worth the investment or not.

If you were to ask us? Invisalign clear aligners are a good investment. However, we will leave it to you to decide after you have read this article till the end.

With the dawn of recent technological advances, modern orthodontic procedures like Invisalign seems to offer comparatively more benefits than conventional ones. Dental health experts and orthodontists can structurally design pain-free, hassle-free,  discreet, and aesthetically pleasing braces for your beautiful smile.

Here are the benefits of Invisalign plastic aligners:

• Almost unnoticeable
• Removable, thus easy to clean
• More comfortable than traditional braces because it is made of flexible plastic
• Requires shorter treatment time than traditional ones
• Doesn’t need frequent visits to your orthodontist compared to metal braces

Detailed scientific research was conducted by various researchers entitled “Clinical effectiveness of Invisalign® orthodontic treatment: a systematic review.”. this was carried out to corroborate the above-mentioned claim. The study was a randomized controlled trial that lasted for a year and included 80 adult patients with crooked or misaligned teeth as subjects. The patients were then divided into two groups, 40 received traditional dental braces and the other group receives clear aligners.

Both these treatments resulted exhibited significant improvements in dental alignment, with no major difference between these groups. However, the patients who were given Invisalign reported higher levels of satisfaction and convenience and opted for Invisalign for its cosmetic appeal and comfort. Moreover, the time taken for the Invisalign was reported to be comparatively shorter than the other group.

Having noticed the effectiveness and the benefits of transparent aligners, it is probably safe to say that this treatment is worth every cent.  However, there might be some restrictions regarding the qualification of the patients to avail of this treatment depending on a number of factors and the expertise of the orthodontist or your dental health expert.

When are Invisalign Aligners a Better Option

Transparent braces might be one of the best alignment procedures in the market right now. Having said that, there are cases where the removable aligners were suitable for some of the patients. This treatment only proves to be effective under very specific conditions and scenarios. So, if you are looking forward to getting one, it is advisable that you also consult your orthodontist to find out more about them.

The first thing that you might want to consider is the price that you are going to have to pay to get these clear plastic dental aligners. In California, the price of a clear dental aligner can vary from $3,500 to $9000, making it comparatively more expensive than traditional orthodontic aligners or braces. So, if you are on a limited budget, there are other options that you might want to look through.

Again, clear braces are better for people with milder to moderate malocclusion.  Metal braces might be a better option for you if you happen to struggle with complicated or severe dental problems. That is probably why it is essential that you talk to a dental professional if you are eligible to get clear braces or aligners.

Based on a study, Invisalign transparent braces are structurally designed to align your dents comparatively faster than the conventional ones. Another research also confirmed that patients who receive Invisalign treatment have periodontal health and are comparatively more satisfied with the transparent aligners as compared to the patients who have a fixed orthodontic appliance. The following characteristics make transparent removable options a better choice than traditional ones.

Things to Consider When Choosing Invisalign Aligners

We have already discovered a few things that certify the Invisalign treatment. However, there are certain other factors that you might want to look up to be better informed and know better.

Patient Eligibility

As pointed out earlier, Invisalign aligners are not suitable for people with complicated dental alignment issues such as a severe overbite, slight and rotated teeth, a large tooth gap, tooth intrusion, or extrusion. So, if you happen to struggle with any of the above-mentioned conditions, your dentist is most likely to recommend other applicable options to you.  

Treatment Goals

Establishing clear treatment goals with your dentist and finding out if they can be met using the Invisalign aligners is crucial. In order to make things work, your orthodontist and you should opt for a foreseeable realistic outcome and then move forward with the treatment plan. This way, you can also avoid false hopes and disappointments at the end of the treatment period.

Compliance

You are required to be completely committed and cooperative during the procedure to reach the desired goal. Strictly abiding by the list of Do’s and Don’t’s by your orthodontist can assure faster and better outcomes of the treatment.

Invisalign Cost and Insurance Coverage

Other than the treatment goal, if you also take into account the cost of the treatment, finding out more about the prices for the various available options might be useful in helping you determine your paying capacity and shortlist the available options accordingly.

The good news is, some of the dental insurance companies offer plans to cover transparent dental aligners. Thus, it is always advisable to find a dental clinic that is covered under your dental insurance plan. You should also confirm with your dental insurance company if they cover transparent invisible dental aligners under your plans or any other plans that they offer.

Maintenance

Opting for clear braces might save you some time and money from not having to visit your dentist as frequently as you would have to in the case of traditional braces. But you are required to maintain your invisible aligners with a lot of devotion. Regular dental check-ups and scheduled appointments are necessary to make sure that you procure the desired results. The process can also enable your orthodontist to track and monitor the alignment of your teeth and the improvements it is making.

Monitoring and tracking through simple scheduled check-ups can save you from any possible unforeseen dental complications that might suddenly occur.

Here are some of the things that you might want to remember before visiting your dentist to get your dents straightened with invisible braces:

Invisalign clear aligners can live up to their hype and be worth your money. However, they’re not for everyone, especially those with severe orthodontic problems.

It will help if you consider your goals, paying capacity, and maintenance to get the most out of this orthodontic treatment.

It’s always of utmost importance to seek the advice of a dental professional when getting a dental treatment that can make or break your orthodontic plans.

Meanwhile, let’s quickly explore the differences between veneers and Invisalign treatment to help you choose the best option for your smile and budget.

What are veneers?

Veneers are incredibly thin shells structurally built of dental-grade material. A competent dental health expert or an orthodontist cements these shells to the frontal surfaces of the teeth permanently, effectively disguising the numerous smile anomalies, such as:

• Chips and craze lines
• Worn tooth enamel
• Stubborn discoloration
• Large diastemas (gaps between the teeth)
• Irregularly shaped or short teeth
• Minor crowding
• Dentists can use many materials to craft custom-made veneers, such as:
• Porcelain
• Composite resin
• Zirconia

Veneers are almost close to a permanent way to enhance your smile and protect your teeth. Most patients with Venners can enjoy it for approximately around 10 years before needing replacement. However, one of the research projects conducted in 2012 confirmed that patients with porcelain veneers can enjoy their veneers for more than 20 years before requiring a replacement.

Veneers vs. Invisalign

Opting for the most suitable treatment for your smile completely depends on your oral health conditions, smile goals, and obviously your budget. Let us quickly look these up.

Oral Health

Patients struggling with thin or worn-out dental enamel might be better candidates for veneers. This is primarily because the porcelain veneers act as a substitute for the dental enamel. As a result, veneers might also save you from extreme tooth sensitivity and dental decay.

Unfortunately, patients who are susceptible to cavities might not be the best candidates for Invisalign. this is primarily because the aligners are designed to rest snugly and closely against the surfaces of the teeth, which might also provide shelter to the dental cavity-causing bacteria on the vulnerable teeth.

Smile Goals

Invisaligns are primarily designed to focus on the permanent alteration of one’s dental alignment. Veneers on the other hand merely hide the smile imperfection without changing the way that teeth are oriented inside the mouth.

So, if you are only looking forward to straightening your teeth, Invisalign might be the best choice for you depending on your dental health conditions. However, if you want to correct the cosmetic concern along with the alignment, veneers might be your thing.

Budget

 The latest available data suggest that a single porcelain veneer might cost the patients approximately around $1,500 (without insurance). So, if a patient gets six veneers, that can add up to at least $9,000 along with other correlated expenses.

Invisalign treatments can also cost patients approximately $3400, with insurance. However, patients without insurance might have to shed closer to $5,000 from their own pocket.

Correct Your Crooked Teeth Today

If you are looking forward to trying out Invisalign trays or porcelain veneers, then Smile Craft Dental is the best place to schedule an appointment. At Smile Craft Dental, we care and prioritize our patients and, most importantly, we intend to make sure that they are satisfied and convinced with the services they receive while under our care.

Our trusted team of dental professionals have acute knowledge about their domain and are more than happy to provide in-depth information and answer all your concerns that you might have about each of the procedures to make sure that you’re a suitable candidate for either veneers or Invisalign. After visiting our offices, we promise you’ll be more confident about your dental health and your teeth than ever.