Invisalign Clear Braces – Plano, TX

How is Invisalign Teen Different?

Invisalign Teen works much like the adult version, using a series of clear, custom-made aligners to gently move teeth. The main difference is the built-in blue compliance dots, which gradually fade as the trays are worn as directed. This helps parents, teens, and our Plano dentists easily track wear time and stay on target with treatment.

Is Invisalign Right for Your Teen?

Invisalign Teen is designed for growing patients who need mild to moderate orthodontic correction, like crowding, small gaps, or slightly crooked teeth.

If you believe your child is responsible enough to wear their aligners 20 to 22 hours a day and keep track of them, they may be an excellent candidate.

Our Plano dental team will examine their teeth, bite, and jaw alignment, then discuss whether Invisalign Teen best fits their needs, so there’s never any second-guessing.

The Benefits of Invisalign Teen

With Invisalign Teen, your child will be able to straighten their smile in style, enjoying benefits, like:

• A Discreet Appearance: Clear aligners are barely noticeable, helping teens feel more confident in any social situation.
• Comfort and Convenience: Smooth plastic trays are removable for meals, brushing, flossing, and special events. Your teen won’t have to choose between enjoying life and straightening their teeth.
• Fewer Emergencies: There are no brackets or wires to break, which means fewer unexpected visits when compared to braces.
• Better Oral Hygiene: It’s easier to clean around teeth, helping keep your child’s oral health in top shape during treatment.

Basically Invisible Braces

Let’s start with one of the most obvious benefits of Invisalign: the aligners are not as cumbersome-looking as metal braces. As a result, you’ll be able to smile confidently knowing that the first thing others see isn’t brackets and wires! The key to keeping your orthodontic treatment under the radar is proper care and maintenance (i.e., brushing consistently, rinsing your aligners with water each time you take them off, scrubbing the surface of your trays with a damp, soft-bristle toothbrush after every meal).

Freedom to Eat Your Favorite Foods

After you get metal braces, your orthodontist will most likely hand you a list of foods you won’t be able to eat because you’ll break the appliance. With clear aligners, all you need to do is take them out before you snack or drink anything besides water. It’s as easy as that! All we ask is that you do your best not to overindulge on cavity-causing foods, like ice cream, to keep your smile healthy throughout your orthodontic treatment.

Easy Dental Care

With traditional braces, patients often need to buy interproximal toothbrushes, pre-threaded floss, and other special cleaning products to keep their smiles healthy. With Invisalign, it’s much simpler; simply remove the aligners, place them in their designated case, and continue with your oral hygiene regimen as usual! Then, clean your aligners with a damp, soft-bristled toothbrush and clear, mild dishwashing soap before putting them back on.

No Monthly Adjustment Visits

To ensure continuous pressure is placed on your teeth, traditional braces need to be adjusted every month. Invisalign is different; you progress through portions of your treatment plan at home. Then, every 6-8 weeks, you come to our office so your cosmetic dentist can make sure your teeth are moving as anticipated. If they are, then we will provide you with the next several sets of aligners and see you at your next visit!

Shorter Average Treatment Timeline

Another benefit of Invisalign that patients often don’t know is that the average treatment timeline is shorter than that of metal braces. While traditional orthodontics typically take 2-3 years, clear aligners can often deliver the same beautiful results in just 12-18 months. If you are interested in finding out how long your teeth-straightening journey will be, schedule a consultation with us! That way, we can get an in-depth understanding of your dental history, needs, and goals before creating your custom treatment plan.

Wearing Your Trays

Of course, you need to wear your aligners in order for them to work. More specifically, you need to wear them for a minimum of 20 hours a day, every day. One of the easiest ways to make this goal a reality is by only taking them off when it’s absolutely essential, like before eating breakfast. However, you may find it helpful to use the stopwatch on your phone as a guide, especially toward the beginning of your Invisalign treatment.

Cleaning Your Aligners

Like many other patients, you may have chosen Invisalign over other orthodontic treatments because the aligners are barely noticeable. Well, they will only stay that way if you take good care of them! The good news is that you don’t need any expensive cleaning products. Just use a damp, soft-bristled toothbrush and clear, mild dishwashing liquid to gently scrub the surface. When you’re done, rinse the aligners with clean, cool water and put them back on.

Eating & Drinking

When it comes to eating and drinking with Invisalign, there’s only one rule: you need to take your aligners off beforehand (unless it’s water). That way, your aligners don’t stain or warp, rendering them virtually useless. Outside of that, just do your best to limit your intake of cavity-causing foods, like ice cream, taffy, and potato chips.

Losing or Damaging a Tray

Since it’s difficult (if not impossible) to meet the 20-hour-a-day wear time if your aligners are damaged or lost, it’s important that you call us ASAP. The sooner you do, the sooner we can learn what happened and determine the best way to proceed. For example, if there is a significant crack or you can’t find your trays, then we may ask you to move on to the next set in the series a tad earlier than anticipated.

Attending Progress Visits  

With traditional braces, patients need to commit to monthly adjustment appointments. That’s not the case with Invisalign! After all, this smile-enhancing service allows you to progress through portions of your treatment plan at home. So, there’s a good chance that you’ll only need to come to our office every 6-8 weeks. If you’re on track with your treatment plan, your visits will likely be less than 30 minutes, too.

Crowded Teeth

Even if you’ve historically had perfectly even teeth, it’s possible for them to eventually drift out of alignment because of the frequent pressure sustained through daily biting and chewing. Then, if their surfaces overlap or they’re pressed too closely together, it’s harder to thoroughly brush and floss them. This increases your vulnerability to common oral concerns, such as cavities and gum disease.

Repositioning your grin with these clear aligners can, therefore, improve your dental condition and appearance simultaneously.

Gaps Between Teeth

Those with wider spaces between their teeth are more likely to sustain injuries to their gums or trap food or other debris and develop disease or decay. Invisalign is designed to fit snugly over your arches to shift your teeth closer together, shielding your tender tissues and boosting your oral health.

Overbite

It’s normal and expected for your top teeth to rest gently outside the lower ones when you bite down. However, if they extend too far, you’re likely to wear down the back surfaces of your enamel prematurely, increasing the likelihood of sustaining injuries or other issues. You might also develop jaw aches and changes to your speech patterns.

Invisalign can help shift your upper and lower arches into their correct positions, though additional accessories, like buttons or bands, may be required.

Underbite

You might think of an underbite as the opposite of an overbite. This condition occurs when your lower teeth extend past the top ones when your mouth is closed. This can occur due to non-nutritive habits, like thumb-sucking, or because of genetics or physical trauma.

Whatever the cause, it can potentially restrict your airways and upper nasal passages, increasing the risk of developing sleep apnea. Our team can help shift your jaw to its correct placement to help prevent this.

Crossbite

If some of your upper teeth rest inside of your lower ones in certain areas but outside of them in others, you might have a crossbite. This can happen due to poor dental hygiene, losing your baby teeth prematurely, genetics, or injuries. If left untreated, it can cause headaches and increase the risk of dental problems.

Fortunately, Invisalign can reposition your teeth so they rest in the proper places when you bite down.

Open Bite

An open bite refers to a condition in which your teeth don’t touch together at all when your mouth is closed. This can happen due to poor bone development and non-nutritive habits in childhood, and can wear down your enamel or impede your ability to enunciate different sounds.

Invisalign can correct your bite misalignment to reduce the risk of uneven wear and tear to your teeth.

Factors that Affect the Cost of Invisalign

The cost of treatment varies from person to person due to a few main factors that are generally considered:

• Number of Arches: The vast majority of people who undergo Invisalign treatment will straighten both their upper and lower teeth at the same time. However, in certain cases, only one arch needs to be addressed. If this is the case for you, this will result in a lower cost.
• Complexity: If you have severe misalignment issues, your treatment is likely to cost more. Closing a few small gaps is cheaper than correcting a significant bite problem.
• Length of Treatment: A longer treatment time will mean additional aligners and a higher cost.

Invisalign VS Smile Direct Club™: Which Costs More?

If a patient’s looking for a “quick fix,” lower budget options, like Smile Direct Club™, may seems like a tempting option. However, a lower cost doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the best option out there. While the price is generally more affordable than Invisalign, Smile Direct Club™ has a “do it yourself” approach with little-to-no oversight from a trained professional. Ultimately, this means additional room for error. You could even end up with serious issues that will need to be treated by a professional anyway.

With Invisalign, you have the oversight of our dentists for each step along the way. Invisalign is professionally made, uses highly accurate impressions, and results in a more successful treatment overall. The cost difference is certainly worth it for a smoother, stress-free orthodontic treatment.

Does Dental Insurance Cover Invisalign?

Some dental insurance plans include coverage for orthodontic treatment, so you should check with your insurance provider to see what is included in your benefits. We are proud to be in-network with all PPO plans. Our team is happy to help you understand what your plan consists of. If you have any questions, let us know.

Options for Making Invisalign Affordable

If you don’t have dental insurance, you aren’t necessarily left completely on your own. We work with CareCredit – a third-party financing company that can break the cost of your treatment into manageable monthly installments with little-to-no interest. Talk to one of our friendly team members to learn more about your financial options.

To find out exactly how much you can expect your treatment to cost, schedule a consultation with us. We’re eager to help you achieve your smile goals!