Invisible orthodontics is one of the most innovative techniques and offers greater aesthetic advantages than dental alignment techniques with braces. What is it about?
Invisible orthodontics is a dental treatment that uses appliances that are transparent and almost invisible to simple sight. It is an innovative technique with more aesthetic advantages than the technique with braces and wires that cover a large part of the tooth. Let’s see what it consists of and what are the advantages.
What does orthodontics mean?
Orthodontics is a branch of dentistry. It deals with the study, prevention and treatment of maxillofacial anomalies in terms of size, position and shape.
The purpose of this specialty is to correct the alterations and obtain an optimal state of mouth health, harmony of the smile and correct alignment of the teeth.
Orthodontics makes use of various devices for the correction of the teeth. The most common are braces or plates , metal or ceramic structures that are fixed on the teeth. Inside them are made to pass wires or arches of different thickness. These arches allow you to move the teeth by generating tensile forces with the plates.
Orthodontics has made a lot of progress over time . Today it is possible to move the teeth through aligners that adapt to the dentition and are practically invisible.
Orthodontics is the discipline that allows to correct the alterations of the maxillofacial structures.
What does invisible orthodontics consist of?
It is a treatment that involves the use of transparent masks or aligners . To plan this type of intervention, a series of virtual 3D models is used; in this way it is possible to obtain a simulation of the movement of the teeth for the entire treatment.
The aligners are thermoplastic masks with a thickness of about 0.5 mm, therefore almost invisible. To achieve the desired displacement, the mask is accompanied by a series of white molds, to be applied on the teeth, called attachments.
The masks must be replaced every 10-15 days. Treatment can last from 4 months to 2 years, depending on the degree of correction needed for each patient .
It is important to know that this treatment cannot solve all problems related to dentition . It is in fact indicated for small-scale movements, giroversions , etc. For important movements, the recommended technique is instead the fixed appliance with plates.
Advantages of invisible orthodontics
- It is a highly aesthetic treatment.
- Avoid the sores or wounds that braces and arches tend to produce with traditional orthodontic technique. It is therefore a less invasive treatment for the patient .
- Allows for greater hygiene. The masks can be removed and brushed . Because the fixed braces are more difficult to clean, there is a tendency for plaque buildup on the gums which can lead to gingivitis or inflammation.
- The aligners are built on the mold of the patient’s mouth. The treatment, therefore, is completely personalized .
- By allowing better hygiene, it exposes less to the risk of tooth decay , gingivitis, white spots, etc.
- For small displacements it provides an identical result to that offered by conventional orthodontics . In some cases it can be even faster.
Invisible orthodontics is an interesting technique because it offers greater aesthetic advantages over traditional fixed braces.
Disadvantages
- The masks must be worn at least 20 hours a day to achieve the desired result . They can be removed during meals and for hygiene practices.
- They must be worn continuously, otherwise the treatment is prolonged or the situation could even get worse.
- Patients suffering from bruxism tend to wear out the aligners quickly, which will therefore need to be replaced more frequently.
- Generally involves a higher cost than treatment with a fixed appliance.
This treatment is suitable for adults and children. It should always be borne in mind that orthodontics is a subsequent step to the treatment of other pathologies of the oral cavity . That is to say, urgent treatments such as fillings, teeth cleaning, endodontics and more must be carried out first.
In short
Invisible orthodontics with aligners is an innovation in the branch of dentistry. It allows to reach the goal guaranteeing the patient the minimum aesthetic impact and the maximum comfort.
Thanks to the simulation using 3D software it is possible to be very precise, with detailed monitoring of the patient’s condition.
