Invisalign treatment is an orthodontic treatment that aims to improve the appearance of your smile by helping straighten your teeth. If you are looking for ways to achieve this without the metals and wires in traditional braces, this treatment can be right for you.
To help you decide, this blog post will discuss what to expect from this treatment.
Contents Navigation
- What Is Invisalign Treatment?
- What Can You Expect From Invisalign Treatment?
- Why Do Straight Teeth Matter?
- Does Invisalign Change Your Face Shape?
- How Long Does It Take For Invisalign To Feel Normal?
- Is Invisalign Treatment Right For Me?
- What Can Invisalign Not Treat?
- How To Clean Teeth With Invisalign?
- Will I Have To Wear A Retainer After My Treatment?
- Final Thoughts
What Is Invisalign Treatment?
Invisalign treatment is a popular orthodontic dental procedure that is a good alternative to traditional wires or metallic braces. It involves wearing custom plastic aligners that are almost invisible for at least 20 to 22 hours per day. The goal is to shift your teeth into the desired position gradually. You have to switch to a new set of aligner trays every two weeks.
The treatment time may take 12 to 18 months, depending on every patient’s teeth condition. This is based on the amount of tooth movement necessary to achieve your ideal smile.
Anyone can have Invisalign treatment, from teenagers to adults. The only requirement is that all your adult teeth should have come in, which occurs between 12 to 13 years of age. Also, you must be responsible enough to wear them for the recommended amount of time to ensure a positive outcome.
What Can You Expect From Invisalign Treatment?
After completing the treatment process, you can expect to experience its benefits as follows:
- A beautiful smile: Results vary, but you may see a subtle difference after 10 to 12 weeks of wearing Invisalign aligners.
- Improved dental health: Since you can remove your aligners, you can easily clean your teeth and gums, which helps reduce the risk of tooth decay and gum disease. Whereas before getting this procedure due to tooth gaps, there is a risk of plaque buildup in the gaps between your teeth, making them a breeding ground for bacteria.
- Enhanced confidence: A straighter smile can do wonders for your self-esteem, making you feel better in social and professional settings. After completely removing your aligners within 12 or 18 months, you can smile more often.
- Straighter teeth: After completing your treatment, you can expect straighter teeth that provide many benefits aesthetically and functionally.
- Fewer food restrictions: You can eat anything you want during your treatment because you can remove your aligners when you eat or clean your teeth. This is in contrast to when wearing braces, as you must avoid sticky, hard or chewy foods that can damage the wires and brackets.
Why Do Straight Teeth Matter?
Having straight teeth is not just all about a cosmetic issue. While having can improve your look, it also has functional benefits. Here are some reasons why having straight teeth is essential:
- It can improve your oral health: When your teeth are properly aligned, brushing and flossing them is easier, which helps reduce the risk of tooth decay and gum disease.
- It can prevent bone loss: When your teeth are misaligned, it puts extra stress on your gums and jawbone, leading to bone loss.
- It can help with chewing and speaking: As mentioned above, if your teeth are not aligned properly, you may have difficulty chewing or speaking clearly. Properly aligned teeth can help you bite and chew food more effectively and improve the clarity of your speech.
- It can relieve pain: If you have teeth that are misaligned, you may experience jaw pain or tension headaches. Once you complete your Invisalign treatment, the pain and discomfort should go away.
Does Invisalign Change Your Face Shape?
This depends on how much your teeth were shifted during the treatment. In some cases, people may see a change in their face shape after getting Invisalign, but this is usually subtle. Invisalign can also make your jawline look more defined since it pulls your teeth back, which gives the illusion of a sharper jaw.
How Long Does It Take For Invisalign To Feel Normal?
While they are almost invisible, plastic aligners are still foreign objects in your mouth. So, it’s normal to feel uncomfortable or even in pain for the first few days of wearing them. But this should go away within seven days as your mouth gets used to the aligners.
Is Invisalign Treatment Right For Me?
If you have the following conditions, you may want to consider Invisalign treatment:
- You have crowded teeth
- You have small spacing between the teeth
- You have crooked teeth
- You have mild to moderate underbite, overbite or crossbite
- If you have misaligned teeth that you want to address but don’t want to wear braces
What Can Invisalign Not Treat?
While Invisalign can help address a wide variety of dental issues, there are some conditions it cannot treat. Here are some of them:
- Severely rotated teeth
- Teeth that need to be pulled
- Missing teeth
- Cavities
- Gum disease
- Large tooth gaps
How To Clean Teeth With Invisalign?
Since you can remove your aligners anytime, you can do so when you clean your teeth. Here are some oral hygiene habits to maintain while on this orthodontic procedure to keep your teeth clean:
- Rinse your mouth: After every meal, rinse your mouth with plain water to remove any food particles that may be stuck in your aligners. Consider using an interdental brush—a small, toothbrush-like device that can help clean the spaces between your teeth and aligners.
- Regularly brush your teeth: Brush your teeth twice a day as you would when you don’t have aligners, to remove plaque and bacteria.
- Floss your teeth: You should also floss at least once a day to remove any food particles and plaque that may be stuck between your teeth.
- Clean your aligners: Every day, clean your aligners with mild soap and lukewarm water. You can also use special Invisalign cleaning crystals. Avoid using hot water, as it can warp the shape of your aligners.
- Visit your dentist regularly: Even if you’re on Invisalign treatment, it’s still important to visit your dentist regularly for checkups and cleanings.
Will I Have To Wear A Retainer After My Treatment?
You must wear a fixed or removable retainer after your Invisalign treatment to keep your teeth from shifting back to their original position. Wearing a retainer is typically recommended for at least 3 to 6 months, 22 hours daily after treatment. After this, you may need to wear them only every night for another six months.
Your dentist will give you retainer options, discussing the pros and cons of each.
Final Thoughts
Invisalign treatment is a good dental treatment alternative to traditional metal braces to achieve a straight smile. After completing your treatment in 12 to 18 months, you can expect your teeth to be straighter. However, the process doesn’t end here since you must wear a retainer for at least 22 hours daily for another 3 to 6 months. After then, you can wear them only every night for six months before discontinuing use.
If you have been considering Invisalign as your treatment option for your crooked teeth, moderate tooth gap, or bite problems, we can help you decide.
Call us at 03 8373 0995 to book a consultation. At Magical Smiles, we offer Invisalign treatment, utilising advanced technology to ensure favourable results. The dentists in our clinic have many years of experience performing this treatment. During your initial consultation, we will assess your overall mouth condition to determine if you can have the treatment. If you are, we will design a custom treatment plan. Otherwise, we can recommend alternative treatments that suit you. In addition, we will discuss what you can expect from this procedure, including the timeline of the treatment’s completion, costs, and others.