<p>Some people apparently need some sort of thing cemented to the teeth to hold the appliance in place.</p>
<p>I was one of them. A little “nub” was glued to each of my lower bicuspids, barely visible. They were removed at the end of the procedure.</p>
<p>So, from what I’m reading here, your regular dentist is suggesting the Invisilign, and that’s all he does? Of course it’s all he does – he’s not an orthodontist! </p>
<p>I went through all this 3 years ago. I saw the Invisilign brochure at my dentist’s when I went for a cleaning. I’d been thinking about doing something about my crooked bottom teeth, and asked about it. He gave me the whole spiel, and wanted to charge me $500.00 for the consultation that would result in a price for the whole package. (The consult fee would be credited to the total if I went ahead.) So I scheduled an appointment. About 2 days before I was to go, the proverbial light bulb came on in my head, and I realized what I was doing was stupid. Both D & S had gone/were going to one of the absolute best orthdontists in the area, but I was going trust my teeth straghtening to a regular dentist? So I went for a FREE consult with the ortho who did the plaster mold, x-rays, etc. When I went back he laid out my options, including Invisilign. (He has offered Invisilign for years as one of several options – and who do the regular dentists who have just recently started offering Invisilign call for professional advice when they need it – my orthodontist!) Anyway, the Invisilign option was the most expensive, by far. Plus, he said they don’t work that well for fine tuning the teeth, and he may have to put regular braces on for a while at the end to do that.</p>
<p>I ended up with ceramic braces (somewhat less obvious than the metal ones kids usually get) and had them on for just under 2 years. I now have the Invisilign type as nighttime retainers.</p>
<p>Bottom line: get an evaluation from an orthodontist – straightening teeth is what he/she is trained in!</p>
<p>We can offer only our anecdotal experience. My regular dentist took the Invisalign training, I got the procedure from her, it did what she said it would do (straighten my teeth!), I wear the retainer every night, and I’m a happy customer. I had braces as a kid, but that was before we knew lifetime retainers are needed in some (many, all?) cases. I didn’t want to wear wire braces again.</p>
<p>Isn’t part of the difference that the wire braces can realign not only the teeth, but they can correct bite problems? A few years ago, our pediatric dentist recommended spring retainers to straighten a few problem teeth, and they worked well, and were relatively inexpensive. My D had one close call (the case fell out of the backpack onto the driveway) but we found it before it got ruined. She had taken the things out for lunch at school. Anyway, she mostly wore them as required, and we did not have to bother her too much.</p>
<p>I asked my dentist about Invisalign a few years ago (he does them). What turned me off was that to correct the crowding in my lower jaw, part of the procedure would involve “shaving” the teeth a little on each side to make more room. I couldn’t see taking off perfectly good enamel for a nicer smile.</p>
<p>Isn’t part of the difference that the wire braces can realign not only the teeth, but they can correct bite problems?</p>
<p>Yes, part of the Invisalign evaluation is to check if the given problem(s) can be so corrected. </p>
<p>What turned me off was that to correct the crowding in my lower jaw, part of the procedure would involve “shaving” the teeth a little on each side to make more room.</p>
<p>The same would be true for wire braces; there is enough existing room, or not, regardless of the straightening mechanism. I did indeed have a couple of teeth so shaved, but there must be enough remaining enamel to allow it. We’re talking about millimeter or sub-millimeter amounts.</p>
<p>We were at the orthodontist’s office this afternoon, and there’s a big new display about invisalign for teens. That’s a new bit of marketing. I didn’t ask if there is a fundamental difference in treatment. And, for what it’s worth, D1, a little over a year into treatment, now says that if she had a do-over, she’d go with invisalign instead of wire braces.</p>
<p>Vossron – I had never heard of an orthodontist shaving teeth to make room… I learned something today!</p>
<p>Maybe because my D’s had their braces as preteens / teens, the orthdontist was able to make room for their teeth. (Anyone else remember turning the screw on their kid’s hyrax every night?) I guess when the patient is older, the jaw isn’t amenable to stretching and the teeth have to be shaved.</p>
<p>It cost over $5k for my D to be in braces (including all Xrays, teeth removal (she had too many, and the retainer at the end). There was no insurance, and my mom paid for them (after she died) as a gift to my D. We paid cash, up front, and received a 20% discount.</p>
<p>I am an 18 year old invisalign wearer and I really would recommend them. The thing that they glue onto your teeth is a few mm long and its the same colour as your tooth, absolutely invisible I promise. They’re a great idea if your kid really really doesn’t want to wear braces, which made sense for me since no 18 yearold has metal ones and it would have made me really insecure.
It’s true that you need a bit of discipline, it depends on how responsible they are. If you can tell them, hey honey, these are costing $$$ and it will be completely wasted if you don’t follow the rules and have them understand that and obey you, then great. They are a bit uncomfortable, but only for the 12 hours after you put them on and they hurt much less than regular ones do when they’re tightened.
On the other hand, if your kids are young, like 13 or 14 and don’t really mind getting regular braces, get regular ones. They’re less stress on your part and theirs, and its not like you can lose them! If I’d been 13 my mum would’ve made me get regular ones instead of paying more.</p>
<p>I guess when the patient is older, the jaw isn’t amenable to stretching and the teeth have to be shaved.</p>
<p>Correct, or pulled. 
And I did turn our D’s screw (was it 1/4 turn, or 1/2 turn?) every night many years ago. :)</p>
<p>D1 had an expander and we used to turn the key! D2 was given a choice…expander, regular braces and two years of treatment or SureSmile braces, no expander and it was only one year. Easy choice.</p>