Patient Info

Straight teeth and corrected bites are healthier, feel great, and look even better. Crooked teeth are hard to clean properly, and tend to get worn down over time by improper biting, rubbing, and grinding. Aside from the dental health benefits, having straight teeth and a full smile looks awesome – studies show that people who like their smile are more confident and smile more often. There are even many studies that show that smiling more actually releases chemicals in your brain that make you happier!

Age 7 or 8. The American Dental Association recommends that children first see an orthodontist at this age because it is far better to monitor the space needed for the adult teeth as they come in, and potentially make more space if needed, rather than letting crowded teeth come into the wrong places which can lead to the need for extracting adult teeth later.

Not at all! We will clean your teeth, use a cotton roll to keep them dry, and carefully glue the braces or Invisalign attachments on. Later that night you may feel some temporary soreness/discomfort as the teeth begin to move. This will last a couple days after your appointments, or after you switch your Invisalign trays. It is generally a very mild sore feeling that can be minimized with whatever medicine you would take for a headache.

Invisalign moves teeth by using clear plastic trays to apply a controlled force to different parts of your teeth during different parts of your treatment. You will need some small tooth-colored glue dots placed on your teeth (called attachments) so that the trays can click snugly onto your teeth. You will wear each set of aligners for 20-22 hours a day, for a total of seven days. You will then switch to your next aligner, and continue the process for as many trays as you need to straighten your teeth.

Do not confuse Invisalign with the other gimmicky clear aligners you see ads for online. We treat many patients in our office who have tried those and ended up causing themselves more problems that we then had to correct – and most of them weren’t able to get their money back from these scams. Save yourself the time, money, and headache – do it right the first time with us.

The brackets are first glued to each tooth in the perfect spot to cause the movement we need. The brackets then hold a wire in place, which places a small amount of pressure on each tooth. Over time, teeth move into the desired position, and we will make adjustments and change wires as we go. Once all your teeth are straight, we take the braces off, and give you a clear plastic retainer to hold them in the perfect spot.

Once you finish treatment, your teeth will be perfectly aligned and your smile will look amazing! Now it’s time to protect your investment – with a retainer. Retainers are clear plastic trays that are custom made to fit your new smile perfectly. They are worn full time for a few months until your teeth have stabilized and gotten used to their new position. After that, they can be worn at night time only. Studies have shown that teeth will always have a tendency to want to get crowded, so we recommend wearing your retainers every night for as long as you want to keep them straight. For most people – that’s for life! The great thing about clear plastic retainers is that they also protect your teeth from night time grinding, so it’s a win-win. Retainers are night-time for life-time!