A great many articles could be published on the differences between
Invisalign vs braces. New Patients intrigued by Invisalign may ask if braces would work better. There is no good answer to these questions.
Invisalign and regular braces are both used to straighten crooked teeth. In the case of traditional braces, the movement necessary to straighten teeth is transferred via tension produced by wires, to a point of force situated in the center of each brace. Invisalign braces provides this tension as each subsequent tray is assembled with the tooth bearings more straighter than the previous invisalign, the force being placed over the entire set of teeth being treated.
It is a somewhat condensed to say that traditional braces are more efficient in more severe dental cases. However, as a general rule, cases of crowding sufficient enough to warrant tooth removal indeed are treated more effectively with braces. This is because removal of teeth involves the shifting of certain teeth over relatively long distances, where as cases treated without tooth removal (the vast majority of all cases) involve more tipping or rotating teeth along their own axes. Recently, Invisalign has included extraction cases into their criteria of treatable conditions, but in many instances the goal is to use Invisalign for only a portion of the treatment, lessening the time braces ultimately need to be worn.
The majority of situations can be fixed with either invisalign or braces.
Invisalign has the clear asset of being basically invisible when worn, and easily removable for eating, tooth brushing, and occasional special events. The flipside of this advantage of removabliltiy is that great discipline is required to avoid going too long without wearing the aligners; they only work when in the mouth. Each aligner is worn for two weeks, and pressure is felt only for the first few days, yet full-time cooperation is required every day for treatment to progress in the most effective manner. Some patients who are in the midst of treatment have hit rough patches where due to travel, illness, pregnancy, or laziness, they cannot wear the aligners on a full time basis. All is not lost , however, as these patients can wear aligners only at night to capture the progress gained, and then resume full-time wear at some point in the future. Cases only half way completed with Invisalign look 50% better! Similarly, some patients who have had a bad week of wearing the aligners full-time simply wear the aligners for more than two weeks prior to switching to the next aligner. While most Invisalign patients accept the added responsibility of monitoring their own compliance carefully, most remain happy to have avoided braces. However, there have been some Invisalign patients who seem to tire of the daily grind of aligner wear and removal, petering out as the months go by. Without ideal cooperation in wearing aligners 20-22 hours each day, ideal results cannot be achieved.
Though braces cannot be removed, most patients, after a more unyielding adjustment period, become completely used to the braces, and usually forget about them. Clear traditional braces, which are affixed to the tooth, look surprisingly good compared to the gleaming metal braces you might have imagined from childhood.