1. Clear aligners are fabricated from a scan of your teeth. No impressions are necessary!
2. You need to be committed. Clear aligners do not work well unless the trays are worn 22 hours each day.
3. Your aligner trays need to be removed when eating or drinking anything besides water. Each time you eat, you will need to brush your teeth before putting the trays back in your mouth.
4. There is an adjustment period in the beginning. The trays can seem difficult to get in and out of your mouth. Some patients have a temporary lisp for a few days.
5. Elastics can be used with aligners just like with braces. They are necessary if your bite needs adjustment. Small hooks may be placed on the teeth
6. Attachments will be placed on your teeth. These attachments are translucent and are used to help control tooth movement.
7. Use hand soap or denture cleaner to clean your aligners.
8. Teeth may require some “filing.” We call this IPR. We use a type of dental sandpaper to file between the teeth. A thin layer (less than .5mm) of enamel is removed, making the teeth narrower. This helps us to straighten crowded teeth.
9. The first set of trays will typically contain 20-30 aligners. After the first set of trays is completed, we will take a second scan of your teeth. A second set of trays will be fabricated. These “refinement trays” are used to make minor tweaks.
10. Final results may not be as ideal as treatment done with braces. Clear aligners do not move the roots of teeth as well as braces. Severely rotated teeth may not be fully corrected. If you are interested in clear aligners, we will be sure to show you if there is anything that may not be fully treated with aligners.
