“What are the disadvantages of Invisalign treatment?”
I want to straighten my teeth with Invisalign. What are the disadvantages of Invisalign treatment?
3 Answers
Consult your board certified orthodontist to see if you are a candidate for Invisalign and the disadvantages in your case if any.
The main disadvantage of Invisalign treatment is that it takes so much longer than regular braces. Another disadvantage is that if you need functional appliances to grow bone, such as a palatal expander, you can’t do them both at the same time. First you would do the palatal expander and then the Invisalign as opposed to doing the regular braces and expander at the same time.
A third disadvantage is that if you require bone growth and you’re in braces the growth is maintained even after the functional appliance is removed because the braces and arch wires maintain everything right to the completion of treatment. There are times that my patient has completed the bone growth and gone into the aligner (Invisalign) phase of treatment and lost some of the growth because the aligners just don’t maintain everything the way regular braces do.
Another disadvantage is that the position of the teeth with Invisalign must be maintained for life with retainers so that the teeth don’t relapse to a crooked position. With regular braces once you finish with the retainers you rarely have a relapse unless functional appliances to grow the bone were never used. If the doctor uses functional appliances to grow the width of the palate and even to grow the front part of the palate forward you don’t have relapses. Invisalign came about because of relapses due to the doctor not using functional appliances to grow the bone to make room for all of the teeth. That’s why there are and were so many orthodontic cases that required teeth to be extracted. You need to find a dentist who was trained in functional appliances so that you can grow the bone and avoid extracting teeth and also have a very stable long term result without relapses. Invisalign was the answer to the problem of an orthodontic relapse because functional appliances were not used and the patient wanting straight teeth without having to go through braces again. Consequently, you can now understand why you need Invisalign retainers for life because without them the teeth will relapse into crowding and rotating similar to how they were before getting braces initially.
It’s a long answer because it’s a complicated question. To review quickly: Invisalign doesn’t align the teeth as precisely as braces and takes longer than braces and a lot longer if the doctor is using functional appliances to grow the bone to avoid extractions and you need retainers for life. Nevertheless, I have patients that only want Invisalign and I’ll use functional appliances where necessary to avoid extractions and to correct cross bites. Therefore, Invisalign definitely has a place in dentistry and I’ve been using them since they came out in the early 2000s. Plus, I’ve been using regular braces and functional appliances since about 1977, 1978 and still use them and especially on patients for whom Invisalign is not an option. There are some things that Invisalign can’t do and/or can’t do very well but the experienced clinician can still overcome many obstacles and challenges with extra time and going back and forth between functional appliances and Invisalign.
Sincerely,
Dr. Druckman
A third disadvantage is that if you require bone growth and you’re in braces the growth is maintained even after the functional appliance is removed because the braces and arch wires maintain everything right to the completion of treatment. There are times that my patient has completed the bone growth and gone into the aligner (Invisalign) phase of treatment and lost some of the growth because the aligners just don’t maintain everything the way regular braces do.
Another disadvantage is that the position of the teeth with Invisalign must be maintained for life with retainers so that the teeth don’t relapse to a crooked position. With regular braces once you finish with the retainers you rarely have a relapse unless functional appliances to grow the bone were never used. If the doctor uses functional appliances to grow the width of the palate and even to grow the front part of the palate forward you don’t have relapses. Invisalign came about because of relapses due to the doctor not using functional appliances to grow the bone to make room for all of the teeth. That’s why there are and were so many orthodontic cases that required teeth to be extracted. You need to find a dentist who was trained in functional appliances so that you can grow the bone and avoid extracting teeth and also have a very stable long term result without relapses. Invisalign was the answer to the problem of an orthodontic relapse because functional appliances were not used and the patient wanting straight teeth without having to go through braces again. Consequently, you can now understand why you need Invisalign retainers for life because without them the teeth will relapse into crowding and rotating similar to how they were before getting braces initially.
It’s a long answer because it’s a complicated question. To review quickly: Invisalign doesn’t align the teeth as precisely as braces and takes longer than braces and a lot longer if the doctor is using functional appliances to grow the bone to avoid extractions and you need retainers for life. Nevertheless, I have patients that only want Invisalign and I’ll use functional appliances where necessary to avoid extractions and to correct cross bites. Therefore, Invisalign definitely has a place in dentistry and I’ve been using them since they came out in the early 2000s. Plus, I’ve been using regular braces and functional appliances since about 1977, 1978 and still use them and especially on patients for whom Invisalign is not an option. There are some things that Invisalign can’t do and/or can’t do very well but the experienced clinician can still overcome many obstacles and challenges with extra time and going back and forth between functional appliances and Invisalign.
Sincerely,
Dr. Druckman
There aren't any. Just wear the aligners as prescribed. With braces, oral hygiene is difficult. That will result in spotting and staining. With Invisalign, oral hygiene is easy. There are dozens of foods you can't eat. With Invisalign, you can eat whatever you want.
