A Critical Look At Invisible Braces

These are the perfect alternative to metallic braces. They are coined 'invisible' either because they cannot be seen, that is, strategically placed at the back of the teeth, or because aligners made of clear plastic are used to straighten crooked teeth or correct bite problems.

Aligners

Clear plastic material is used to line up crooked teeth. The patient can remove them as they so wish before the recommended time but if done too often, the treatment time is prolonged. Align Technology a leader in digital dentistry describes their functioning as using a series of nearly invisible, removable aligners that are custom-made for the teeth. Impressions and photographs of the teeth are taken so the aligner is generated afterwards. They give a statistic in addition, of about 2.5 million wearers of clear aligners all around the world.

The best thing about these aligners is that they are almost impossible to detect when the wearer smiles, because they are clear. They are also removable and custom made, therefore very comfortable. What can be seen as a downside however, is that a new set is needed every two weeks. Also, it is one of the most expensive teeth aligning/realigning devices.

Lingual Braces

These arebraces placed on the inside of the teeth.Their manufacturing primarily involves robots which bend the wires and brackets to fit the exact dimensions of the teeth. The most common problem fixed by this kind of brace is overcrowding. The brace is bonded to the teeth in one fix.

The treatment takes place in three phases, where first, an immovable clip is used in the brace to level and align the teeth. The clip is made passive to minimize friction. In the second phase, an interactive clip is used to close the gaps between the teeth. For the final phase, a fully active clip is fixed to the braces to help the jaw move in all directions.

These braces are termed invisible because they cannot be seen from the outside, they fit accurately on each tooth, allow for complex jaw movements and the staining on them, if any, are not visible. Wire changes are also quicker because the brackets anchor themselves independently and wires are pre-formed to fit onto the teeth perfectly. Above all, the high precision of robots in forming wires and the independent manufacturer of self-ligating brackets make it easy to predict results of the treatment.

However, on the downside, they are not appropriate for complex teeth problems, adjusting them during dental visits take relatively long, and given their positioning on the teeth, it takes a while for the tongue to get used to grazing the metal and this may affect speech negatively. They are also relatively expensive, are difficult to clean and are worn for longer.

American Orthodontics additionally describes it as combining Interactive Self Ligating Brackets-no bands or ligatures are required to anchor the brackets to the wire and anterior positioning Jigs used in the initial and later stages of treatment. They are a guide for bonding the front teeth later, which could not be bonded in the initial stages of treatment.

According to the Australian Society of Orthodontists, few Australian orthodontists recommend them because they are more difficult to manage than other braces.


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Gullota Orthodontics always stay a step ahead in offering the latest in digital dentistry. Niño is one of the resident orthodontists who work skillfully every day to transform smiles of hundreds of Australians on the Gold Coast. For more information visit us at http://gullottaorthodontics.com.au/braces-gold-coast/invisible-braces/ .