What’s the Difference Between Invisalign and Traditional Braces?

Could Invisalign be your ticket to straighter teeth?

One of the most frequent questions we get about Invisalign goes something like this, “What’s better? Invisalign or ‘regular’ braces?”

Invisalign can help straighten your teeth, and so will traditional braces. However, Invisalign does so in a way that is much more convenient for many patients. While traditional braces involve a fair amount of brackets, wires, and sometimes even rubber-bands to help do their job, Invisalign only uses a series of custom aligners that can be easily removed. As your treatment progresses, the aligners gradually get smaller and smaller, slowly and gently applying pressure in order to move your teeth in the direction they need to go.

If you’re only now beginning to do your research on Invisalign, this might be where you start to wonder, “Well why would anyone bother with traditional braces if Invisalign is so easy?” and the answer is, because Invisalign – unfortunately – doesn’t work for everyone. While it can do a great job of aligning problem teeth (while doing so almost invisibly) it doesn’t do everything, and that’s okay! Because while the advantages of Invisalign benefit patients around the globe, the distinct advantages of traditional braces do the exact same thing.

So instead of viewing Invisalign as a better treatment than traditional braces, simply view it as a different tool with it’s own specific set of utilities. After all, would you compare a Philips head screw-driver to a flat-head screw driver? Sure, they’re both screw-drivers, but they accomplish different tasks in somewhat similar ways. When it comes to the difference between Invisalign and traditional braces, the story isn’t much different.

Let’s look at Invisalign vs. Traditional braces with 3 different contexts that are important to anyone considering braces: convenience, cleaning, and capability.

Convenience

This is where Invisalign sort of takes the cake. Being able to remove the plastic retainers used by Invisalign is an incredible benefit. While the retainers need to still be worn for most of the day, the ability to remove them at will makes eating and cleaning much easier. On top of this, being able to go without retainers for a special event (every now and then) is an option many adult patients prefer.

On the other hand, traditional braces are convenient in their own special way. While they are noticeable and harder to clean, they do require less visits to the orthodontist and less diligence over all. For younger patients that might have a hard time keeping “honest” with the need to wear Invisalign for 22 or 23 hours, traditional braces might be more convenient.

Cleaning

Without a doubt, cleaning your teeth with Invisalign is much easier than the alternative. Traditional braces can be cumbersome to brush around which often can lead to the development of localized pockets of plaque and discoloration (which can be easily treated). With Invisalign’s clear retainers, all you need to do is brush, floss, and rinse as you normally would – with a little attention paid to your retainers, in order to clear out any lingering bacteria.

Capability

Capability is the great equalizer when it comes down to comparing Invisalign vs. more traditional braces. While traditional braces might be harder to clean and less convenient for the average adult, it is undeniable that the sheer scope of what can be corrected with traditional braces is much greater. Some mouth, jaw, and tooth adjustments simply can’t be made without the more powerful influence of traditional braces. For this reason, they continue to occupy a dedicated space in our toolbox as useful and valuable dental “tools”.

As a preferred provider of Invisalign in Garden Grove, Primary Dental Care has helped countless patients improve their smile and boost their confidence. Is Invisalign right for you? Only a consultation can say! Contact us today to learn more.

Does Invisalign Work? Yes, but…..

Invisalign is one of modern cosmetic dental technology’s greatest innovations. The funny part is how simple the system really is. Of course, a great deal of complicated precision goes into 3D molding the trays that are actually used to align your teeth, and producing models to show you how much straighter your teeth will be. But the concept in itself is relatively simple: multiple sets of high-tech plastic aligners, gradually adjusted in size to methodically improve your smile.

But one of the most common questions we hear about Invisalign is, “Does it actually work?”

Our experience as a leading Invisalign dentist in Garden Grove makes us uniquely suited to answering that question. But the answer isn’t as simple as a “yes”. It’s a little more complicated than that.

The first concern with Invisalign should be where you get it. Unlike your car or a shirt from the local mall, the first major factor that will ultimately dictate whether Invisalign will “work” or not is who’s providing it. Like any piece of precision equipment, the success of Invisalign treatment largely relies on the experience of the “operator”. In your case, this would mean your dentist.

Invisalign is available from an incredibly wide range of providers. The unfortunate reality is that not all of them know how to use it to the best of its ability. While the Invisalign system predicts the spacing of your teeth, it does little to account for how your bone and soft tissue will be impacted. With this in mind, it takes a dentist who truly knows what they are doing with the Invisalign system to apply their own expertise to modify each patient’s treatment plan to account for their unique situation, especially when that situation is a little more complicated or complex.

Many patients considering Invisalign who have done some “shopping around” begin to notice a few discrepancies when it comes to what dentists say is treatable with the clear plastic aligners. This, again, speaks to how important experience is with the Invisalign system. The range of conditions an experienced Invisalign provider can correct is much greater than those of a less experienced dentist or orthodontist. With the proper experience, your Invisalign provider can use IPR, elastics, buttons, attachments, and other add-ons to use Invisalign to treat even severe crowding, spacing, rotations, open bites, and up to class 3 malocclusions.

At Primary Dental Care of Garden Grove, our dentist and orthodontists are deeply experienced when it comes to the effective application of Invisalign on a wide variety of patients. If you’ve been considering Invisalign and are a patient in Southern California, contact us today for a free consultation.

Can a Better Smile Make You Happier? (Could Invisalign Help?)

Could you be smiling more? Maybe Invisalign can help.

Did you know that smiling can actively change the way your day unfolds and how you feel. Laughter truly is a great medicine, but the more taciturn of you can rejoice! You don’t even have to be audibly laughing to benefit, you can even be doing something as simple as smiling.

We’re not quite sure how Pick the Brain Blog‘s post “15 Fascinating Facts about Smiling” passed under our radar for so many years, but it’s a treasure trove of factoids about how transformative the power of your smile can be. \

Let’s take a look at a few:

Smiling Can Boost your Mood: Psychologists have proven that, even when you’re in a bad mood, forcing yourself to smile can instantly lift your spirits.
Smiles Can Relieve Stress: Smiling can actively release endorphins, even when it’s a “forced” smile. This effectively helps you de-stress, which has many benefits.
Smiling Can Boost Your Immune System: We’ve already learned that smiling can relieve stress. But did you know that stress can negatively impact your immune system? Feel a cold coming on? Turn on your favorite comedy and smile away.

“So what does this have to do with my teeth?” You’re Wondering

Well, it’s no surprise that the state of your teeth has a major impact on confidence. And chances are, your confidence has a very real impact on how much you smile. As an experienced cosmetic dentist in Garden Grove we talk to patients every day about their dreams for a more perfect set of teeth.

Too often, we see patients who are ashamed of their teeth. They would rarely smile. They would make less eye contact, and they would seem less confident. For many of them, that’s where Invisalign came in.

As an Invisalign dentist, we’ve helped countless patients gain the confidence they never knew they had, and witnessing the transformation is something truly special.

More often than not, Invisalign patients change over the course of time. At first, it’s a gradual change. You really have to look for it to see it. But as time moves on and treatment begins to take hold, they transform from young men and women who are ashamed to smile into positive, confident, and beaming individuals. A whole new personality emerges.

Frankly, we love to see it.

Do you have questions about Invisalign? We’re happy to answer them. If you’re a patient in the Garden Grove area, please feel free to contact us today

….or browse our blog for more posts about Invisalign in our Garden Grove dental office.

cosmetic dentist

Keeping Invisalign Invisible (and other Invisalign Tips)

Patients around the world have proven time and time again that Invisalign is one of the most convenient, worthwhile, and sneakiest ways to drastically improve your smile.

It’s convenient because you can take it out when you need to (but don’t forget, Invisalign needs to be worn at least 20 hours a day), and it’s still easy to brush your teeth. It’s worthwhile because it can do what traditional braces can in a similar treatment window. And best of all, it’s sneaky — because it’s practically invisible.

But that brings us to the topic of today’s blog, keeping Invisalign Invisible.

Invisalign Tip #1: Keeping Invisalign Invisible

Remember that Invisalign is clear because it’s made out of a special plastic. However, if you don’t clean it properly it can become cloudy — which takes away from it’s invisible nature. Fortunately, cleaning invisalign is easy.

Brush Invisalign like you’d brush your teeth – with a small amount of toothpaste and water
Soak your Invisalign aligners in a cup of mouthwash for 5 or 10 minutes, this can help with your breath and will ensure that all bacteria is cleaned off

Invisalign Tip #2: Don’t think of Invisalign Aligners as “Shields” for your teeth

They are actually quite the opposite. With Invisalign, it’s incredibly important to be sure that you stay on top of your oral hygiene by brushing and flossing after every meal. If you don’t your teeth are simply tapped with bacteria, food particles and low-PH saliva.

It’s also important to avoid sugary foods and drinks that can stain your enamel. Drinks like soda, coffee, and wine are even more damaging when you’re using invisalign because they have a tendency to get trapped in your aligner trays. Think about them kind of like bleaching trays, instead of containing whitening bleach, they will contain sugary bacteria and tooth staining crud. Nobody wants straighter teeth at the expense of yellower teeth.

Invisalign Tip #3: Temper Your Expectations

It’s important to remember that Invisalign is primarily for cosmetic dental improvement. They are not typically recommended to make more drastic corrections, such as turning and rotating your teeth, or helping with your overbite. While Invisalign can surely help with these conditions to some degree, more drastic improvements with bite and rotation is typically left to the more traditional orthodontic solutions

Invisalign Tip #4: Wear them As Much As You Can

It’s totally fine to take a night off from your retainers for a special occasion (like a wedding or important meeting). Just remember, the more you wear your trays the faster they can do your job and the sooner you can say goodbye to them forever.

Are there Alternatives to Invisalign?

As one of the leading dentists providing Invisalign in Garden Grove, CA our dental team combines years of experience to become one of the most knowledgeable teams in the area on Invisalign. H

It’s not uncommon for treatments like Invisalign to take on the reputation of a solution that works for everyone. While Invisalign surely can treat a wide variety of problems (learn more about it on our previous post: Frequently Asked Questions about Invisalign at Garden Grove Dental Arts ) they’re not right for everyone.

For many patients, the suitability of Invisalign treatment comes down the the conditions that simply can’t be treated with the nearly invisible plastic aligners (more about that in ““Should I get Braces or Invisalign?”) but many times the decision comes down to cost. While Invisalign can often be paid for with no-interest healthcare credit accounts and flexible payment systems available at many dental offices, it isn’t always cheap. With that in mind, many patients search for a more inexpensive alternative to Invisalign.

Some of the less expensive Invisalign options include Clear Correct, Clear Align, and Simpli5. For many patients, Clear Correct is a much similar system that tends to be slightly less expensive with a similar level of quality when compared to Invisalign.

And then we have the more “traditional” alternatives. But wait, we know what you’re thinking: “If I wanted metal braces, I never would have searched for Invisalign alternatives in the first place.” But it’s not quite that simple. If Invisalign is too expensive, you can also consider the following options:

Clear braces: like traditional metal braces, clear braces – while a little more noticeable than Invisalign – provide a more natural looking appearance while offering the same power and versatility as traditional braces. The bonus: nobody will call you metal mouth, and your orthodontist can correct a number of conditions that Invisalign simply can’t (like more drastic rotation and turning of teeth). Treatment will also take much less time than Invisalign, with fewer trips to the dentist. If you want a solution that allows you more freedom to “set it and forget it” with a smaller treatment window, clear braces might be the choice for you. If you’re a patient who isn’t particularly self-conscious, happy to “deal with” slightly more noticeable braces for a little over a year. While clear braces are slightly more expensive than traditional metal braces, they are still less expensive than Invisalign.

Lingual braces:

Like metal braces, lingual braces can accomplish a wide variety of powerful transformations in your mouth. Like Invisalign, they are completely invisible. Their major advantage is the way they combine the best of both worlds. The big difference? Lingual braces are installed behind your teeth. Like clear braces, they are more expensive than traditional braces (but usually less expensive than Invisalign) and can be used to correct few or many of your teeth. They do have a few downsides, however. Lingual braces can be difficult to clean, and a little uncomfortable at first. Your voice may also be affected for the first couple weeks. On top of this, adjustments take slightly longer than traditional braces. But if you want perfect teeth without anyone knowing you “got work done” they could be the perfect Invisalign alternative for you.

When to Choose Clear Braces over Invisalign

For many years, we’ve offered Invisalign for patients in Orange County, and consistently heard rave reviews about how worthwhile the process was. Most of all the patients were, naturally, excited about how “stealthily” they went about perfecting their smile. Needless to say, we think Invisalign is great.

But…Yes, there’s a but.

Invisalign isn’t always perfect, and sometimes it’s not the best solution for your teeth. The best part is that this doesn’t mean you have to resort to getting called “brace face” or “metal mouth”.

In fact, there are a couple great solutions that are virtually as (and sometimes more) incognito than Invisalign. Two popular choices include clear braces and braces that go on the back of your teeth. While clear braces are fairly easy to explain, braces that go on the back of your teeth, otherwise known as lingual braces are more of a foreign concept.

(For more on lingual braces, check out our blog post “the Invisible Alternative to Traditional Braces”.)

When Invisalign Isn’t Right for Your Smile

If Invisalign works so well, you might wonder why many dentists and orthodontics still use clear braces. While the difference in cost isn’t too drastic, that’s not the reason. The reason is simple: Invisalign can’t do everything! Like we said, it all comes down to you and your dentist. That’s why the very first step is to determine what your teeth need.

There are a number of reasons why your teeth might do better with clear, traditional braces. Lets look at three of the most common ones.

Metal Can Work Harder and More Flexibly

The clear aligners used as part of the Invisalign program can accomplish a great deal, that’s for sure. However, they are still slightly inferior when compared to the power and force that can be consistently exerted by brackets and wires when it comes to vertical teeth movement, rotating the canines, or solving complicated issues with your back teeth.

Are You Afraid of Commitment and Prone to Losing Your Possessions?

When you have braces, you should be seeing your dentist roughly every month. With Invisalign, you need to see your dentist every two weeks to swap out your plastic aligners. If that isn’t enough commitment for you, it’s important to remember that the Invisalign program requires the aligners to be in for a majority of the day (and all night). The consequence? A much longer treatment time. On top of this, replacing a lost retainer can get costly. So, if you’re forgetful or a “commitment-phobe”, the semi-permanent alternative might be best for you.

Will Food and Drink Post a Problem?

When you have Invisalign, it’s very important to remove your retainers while eating or drinking. While this might sound easy at first, to some people the reality is very different. For instance, an athlete who frequently must drink water, or a professional brass-musician, who uses a mouthpiece, might find it impossible to “stay honest” with their Invisalign Retainers.

Have a question? We’re here to help. Contact the friendly team at Primary Care Dental for the answers to your orthodontic questions.

Can Invisalign Treat Overbite and Underbite?

As a leading provider of Invisalign in Garden Grove, the dentists of Primary Dental Care know a thing or two about how it works and what it works for. For many patients, Invisalign is a “not-to-secret” secret weapon for straighter, more confident smiles.

But are they too good to be true? Absolutely not. While it might be the case for so many other elective procedures, Invisalign really works. And it even works for some conditions that patients are surprised about. Invisalign treats mild crooked teeth and protruding teeth, as well as issues like overbite, underbite, and malocclusion (when the upper and lower rows of teeth don’t align).

If you have teeth that are too crowded, too spaced out, or simply not quite right. There’s a good chance that Invisalign can help. Better yet, our dentists in Garden Grove and the Fountain Valley area are Invisalign specialists, with years of experience creating better smiles with affordable Invisalign treatments.

What Invisalign Won’t Treat

One of the few downsides of Invisalign is the simple fact that it takes a small amount of control out of your dentist or orthodontist’s hands. Because of this, Invisalign is often passed-over as a solution when it comes to a number of more serious conditions. These include:

Teeth that are severely rotated: If your tooth or teeth are rotated more than 20 degrees, it’s likely they will a straightening solution that’s a bit more robust than Invisalign.

Extraordinarily Large Spacing Between Teeth: If all of the gaps in your teeth combine to total more than ~6mm per aligner, chances are you may require traditional braces.

Your Teeth are severely angled: When teeth are crooked at an angle greater than 40 to 45 degrees, they become much more difficult to treat with Invisalign alone.

Other serious conditions: If you have a deep overbite, underbite, malocclusion, or open bite, these conditions — while manifested in your teeth — are deeply related to your actual skeletal structure. Sometimes, with more serious skeletally based bite conditions are not treated by braces alone, and can require a more serious procedure.

The Bottom Line

Many patients wonder if they’re a good candidate for Invisalign. If the particular imperfection that you’d like to remedy is rather mild, there’s a good chance you’ll be a great candidate. If you’re curious about another condition, such as a moderate overbite or malocclusion, don’t rule Invisalign out! We still may be able to help.

At Primary Dental of Garden Grove Invisalign is one of our specialties. From young adults to retirees, Invisalign can work for just about anyone. Have questions? Don’t hesitate to get in touch. Our team of friendly, family dentists are here to help.

What are Invisalign Attachments, and Why Would I Need Them?

Invisalign is a revolutionary teeth straightening system that has helped patients with varying degrees of misalignment get the straight teeth they’ve always wanted without having to resort to traditional braces. As a leading provider of Invisalign in Garden Grove, our patients frequently ask us about the range of “problems” Invisalign can correct, and more often than not — the answer is a hopeful one.

What Invisalign can accomplish while hardly being seen is truly remarkable. However, it’s important to remember that no two smiles are alike — and sometimes, Invisalign retainers require a little bit of help. This help comes in the form of buttons, attachments, and elastics.

It should come as no surprise that potential Invisalign patients have a lot of questions about these attachments, mainly because they worry they’ll make their Invisalign retainers more noticeable. If these concerns echo your own, remember: Invisalign is designed to make “stealthy” teeth straightening a reality. The same can be said for Invisalign attachments. While they might make your secret weapon just a bit more noticeable, these attachments allow the Invisalign system to correct much more than the plastic retainers would be capable of on their own. So, how do they work?

Invisalign Attachments

Invisalign attachments are just that, small naturally colored attachments that your dentist might add to your teeth to act as anchors so that your retainers will fit properly. This ensures that they provide the correct level of adjustment.

Invisalign Buttons and Elastics

Invisalign “buttons” are often added to the teeth to provide a small “post” for elastics. While not every patient requires buttons or elastics, they enable the treatment to accomplish far more than just the retainers alone. In fact, one of our most common inquiries relates to whether or not Invisalign can correct an improper bite. Fortunately, with buttons and elastics the answer is YES.

Have you decided if Invisalign is right for you? Here at Primary Dental Care, providing unsurpassed Invisalign treatment for the Anaheim and Fountain Valley Area has become one of our specialties. If you have questions about the treatment and how it might help you achieve the smile you’ve always wanted — please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Invisalign: Reactions and Side Effects, As Told by Patients Across the Country

When it comes to any sort of medical procedure, one of the first questions patients always ask is, “What are the side effects?”. This is natural! Whenever we get involved with something, whether it’s committing to a new business venture or to dental braces , you want to be able to know if the “juice is worth the squeeze.” You want to know that the procedure is worth the time and possible inconvenience.

While there are a small number of inconveniences that accompany invisalign, hundreds of thousands of patients around the world have found them minor enough to resoundingly agree that the treatment was “well worth it”. Read what other patients had to say about some of the most common questions dentists and orthodontists get about Invisalign’s side effects.

“What does Invisalign feel like? Is it painful or annoying?”

Most patients agree that Invisalign retainers, while noticeable for a a short time, while gradually become harder to notice. While it gets easier and easier to wear invisalign retainers, some patients recommend avoiding the temptation to “Feel them out” with your tongue.

Take it from one patient, who said: “I notice it less every day. The first few days I had an oral fixation on it and examined the edges of the retainer constantly with my tongue — DO NOT DO THIS — just leave it alone. The tip of my tongue has become very scratched and sore. from patient Droo

“Will people notice I have invisalign?”

We are often our own worst critics when it comes to our appearances. But potential invisalign patients will be happy to know that most patients report friends and loved ones hardly notice their invisalign retainers.

“I cannot overstate the aesthetic value of having “clear braces” over a year. No one, and I mean
no one, could tell I had them on unless I mentioned it. It may be the right solution for you depending on your occupation or personal preference. [by KoolAidSm)]

“Is Invisalign Painful or Uncomfortable?”
When it comes to the intersection of beauty and pain, sometimes some patients are willing to go further than others. However, you can rest easy knowing that the pain involved with Invisalign is very minor and very temporary. While some patients report the initial pain being more uncomfortable than others, it is rare for Invisalign retainers to cause pain for more than a couple weeks. Take it from Polotab — a poster on one popular internet messageboard — who said that the pain generally goes away in a couple of days “I was regretting my decision at first.. But the pain subsides with a day or 2 and ibuprofen really helps. When I switch aligner trays after 2 weeks, I always do so in the evening with an ibuprofen, and I am fine. from patient polotab

Or consider for example the experience of Reddit Ender66.

, who explained that while the Invisalign retainers can “definitely [be] distracting at first, every two weeks you put a new set of trays in and you slowly get more used to them as time goes on. Now, if they’ve been out of my mouth for more than an hour or so, it definitely feels like something is missing. They feel like a part of me now.”

Will Invisalign impact my voice?

Many patients worry about the impact of Invisalign on their voice, and it’s a valid concern. While some patients notice a more pronounced affect than others — a small lisp can sometimes last for a day or so when the first set of retainers is used.

“I was only affected with a lisp with my first set and only for a day or so. In my opinion, they are well worth it. by jackster212

There’s even some positive side effects!

I can lose weight with Invisalign?

Sometimes, we even hear about Invisalign side effects that patients end up enjoying. While it’s true that Invisalign can sometimes make constant eating a bit of a hassle due to the need to remove your retainers, this has enabled some patients to kick the habit of “unconscious eating”. Instead of grabbing for the bag of chips simply because they were “there”, many Invisalign patients think twice due to the need to remove the retainers and put them back in again. This has led to some patients who not only got straighter teeth, but a smaller waistline!

I didn’t realize how often I would eat and drink just because it was there. Now having to deal with my tray and brushing my teeth… I feel like I’ve been forced to do the Invisalign Diet! In only four months I’ve lost 8lbs! When this all over I’ll have good teeth & be super skinny. by M McEachran

…and improve their brushing habits!

Because eating and drinking helps bacteria cling to your teeth, this makes it necessary to brush often when using Invisalign retainers, due to the potential for bad breath. As some patients report, this encourages them to “stay honest” when it comes to their oral health, and leads to more dedicated brushing and flossing.

Garden Grove Dental Arts : Marianna Ibrahim DDS

714-537-5700

Tag Archives: invisalign

More Questions about Invisalign: Answered