My sister in law used Invisalign to get her teeth straightened. I didn’t even know she was doing that until she told me. I was floored. You really couldn’t tell. As we talked about it she told me that they’re much more comfortable than regular braces and her treatment will be over much faster than using braces, too. My teenager needs braces. Will he be able to use Invisalign or is it only for adults?
Christine
Dear Christine,
I am glad that you wrote. I’m also pleased your sister-in-law loved her Invisalign procedure. They have a very high patient satisfaction rate. As for whether or not your teen can use Invisalign, as long as his teeth are fully erupted, he should be fine to use it.
You will want to be aware of some potential issues that could arise because of the differences between Invisalign and traditional metal and wire brackets.
Braces are anchored to the teeth, so patient compliance isn’t an issue. With Invisalign, it is up to the patient to comply. The aligners are designed to be worn for 22 hours a day, which leaves room for meals and oral health care.
Patients are not just given one set of aligners to wear for the length of their treatment. They will change out aligners every two weeks as the teeth shift into their next position. Generally, the dentist provides two pairs at a time.
One of the issues with teenagers using this system is maturity and responsibility. They may neglect to wear the aligners for the amount of time needed or even lose them.
Invisalign tries to address these issues two ways.
- They allow for a limited number of replacement aligners when a teenager is the patient in case they are lost.
- To ensure the aligners are worn the necessary amount of time, they embed a small blue dot at the back of the aligners. The dot disappears when they’ve been worn for the prescribed time and it is safe to switch to the next pair.
You know your son better than anyone. If you think he is responsible enough, than this would be a great way to straighten his teeth.
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