What can you tell me about Invisalign?

March 2, 2006 9:16 AM

I went to the orthodontist this morning, he recommended invisalign. I know nothing about invisalign except that it is really, really expensive. I'd like to hear about your experiences with it, if possible. Thanks!

(A tiny bit more info on my teeth -- I have an overbite, which the orthodontist told me he can't fix, I have a gap, which he said can be fixed if I have a frenectomy, my teeth all lean inwards, and some of them are a little crooked. Every one that I tell about maybe getting braces is like "wha? you don't need them", so I'm trying to figure out if it is worth the pain, cost, and if invisalign really does work).

posted by echo0720 to health & fitness (16 comments total)

A good friend of mine has just completed an Invisalign program. She is very happy with the results although her teeth were not in that bad of shape before. She only wore the "plates" at night so found them to be of minimum inconvenience. Also, she loved the fact that they were removable (a huge plus in my book over traditional braces).
posted by delosic at 9:41 AM on March 2, 2006

My wife just started Invisalign. It's expensive, but your dental insurance may cover [part of] it. Dunno how her teeth are going to turn out yet (she literally just started) but she's been complaining that the edges of the clear, clip-on alignment trays hurt the inside of her lips and gums.

The technology is interesting -- they take a cast of your teeth, scan it into a computer, plan a series of movements to get the teeth where they should be, and produce a set of trays that you use for 2 weeks at a time. When you get to the end of the set, your teeth are (supposed to be) straight.
posted by spacewrench at 9:44 AM on March 2, 2006

You may not look like you need braces to your friends, but if the orthodonist thinks you might, you just might. There's more to proper alignment of teeth than just cosmetics. My guess is that the gap and the crookedness isn't his main concern, but the inward leaning teeth can lead to problems. The inward leaning of all the teeth is something that can affect your jaw and your biting/chewing mechanics, and may lead to teeth/jaw/head/neck problems in the future.

It's possible that the orthodontist is trying sell you something you don't need, but unlikely. Good orthodontists won't try to sell you braces that you don't really need. If you're really concerned, get a second opinion. (From an orthodontist, not your friends.)

The advantage to the Invisalign style is that it's not as painful as standard metal braces (no hooks, etc tearing up the inside of your mouth) and it's not as obvious. You may not need to wear then as long as you'd need wearing them as long as standard braces.
posted by jlkr at 9:45 AM on March 2, 2006

In my mid-twenties, I used Invisalign to correct some crookedness caused by impacted wisdom teeth pushing the rest of my teeth slightly forward. Prior to that I had also had conventional braces when I was a tween.

I didn't have a great experience with the product. My key complaints being:

--You could totally tell that I had something in my mouth, it was just hard to tell what, exactly, was in there.
--This makes people look at you funny while you're speaking, since you can see they're trying to figure it out
--The trays made me salivate, not excessively, but enough to be a bit uncomfortable.
--The trays don't tear up your mouth like regular braces, but they are just a painful in terms of discomfort caused by pressure on the teeth.
--Being able to take them out to eat is not an advantage, IMO. Especially right after getting a new set of trays, it can actually be pretty painful (I was wearing mine 24-7, it might be different if you only have to wear them at night).
--For my treatment, conventional braces would have been faster, and cheaper.

All that said, the treatment worked, and the result is good. I just don't think I would choose Invisalign if I had to do it all over again.
posted by melimelo at 9:57 AM on March 2, 2006

another question -- i know you can't EAT with the aligners in your mouth, but do you have to take them out to DRINK, too? And do they affect the way that you talk like normal braces sometimes do?
posted by echo0720 at 9:58 AM on March 2, 2006

melimelo -- you know, I was wondering about the salivation issue, and about how "invisible" invisalign actually is -- so thank you for your answer.
posted by echo0720 at 10:00 AM on March 2, 2006

Just out of sheer curiosity (I had conventional braces when I was younger), how much on average does Invisalign cost? Back when I had my wisdom teeth removed in 1999, the guy told me I would probably need braces again (and probably do now - my top rack has started to spread back out and the bottom four are starting to get slightly jumbly).
posted by kuperman at 10:38 AM on March 2, 2006

i was quoted around $6K. And my insurance only covers $1k, so you can see why i'm a little hesitant. And the normal braces? They weren't THAT much less.
posted by echo0720 at 12:17 PM on March 2, 2006

My doctor quoted me exactly the same amount for Invisalign and regular braces, so I went with Invisalign. (I'm 25 and didn't want metal mouth.) I haven't gotten them in yet (this week, I hope.), but I will warn you about the foulness of the molds that they take. They squirt this foamy blue stuff in your mouth and you have to just let it sit there for a few minutes. Ew x 50. Also, you can only drink water with them in.
posted by youcancallmeal at 12:43 PM on March 2, 2006

ew!!! water huh? no beer? sad. :-)

will you email me/respond here with an update after you get them and have them in for a while (same goes for spacewrench's wife)? I don't want to make such a huge commitment without hearing many different experiences.

Thanks!
posted by echo0720 at 1:58 PM on March 2, 2006

I've been reading this site for a long time, and I've finally thrown in my five dollars. My girlfriend's about a year into invisalign. Costwise, I can't help you other than to say: yes, it's expensive, and no, her health insurance didn't cover it at all for her (though, she might just have crappy insurance, as she works for a nonprofit). Let's see...

1) Yes, you have to take them out when you eat. You can theoretically keep them in whenever you're drinking, no matter what it is (at least once you get used to them) HOWEVER you do have to be careful about what you're drinking; you don't want them to get stained.
2) There may still be dental visits involved; there's a chance that as your teeth move, they'll have to grind away to make more room. (At least that was the g/f's case.)
3) You can't really see them. When you really look at someone's teeth, you can tell they're there, but I personally don't think this is enough of a negative to make it a dealbreaker.
4) It may affect your speech a little (give you a slight lisp) both (a) when you first get them, because you're not used to it, and (b) when you get a new pair, because they hurt.
5) They hurt. Each time you put in a new pair, there will be a couple days of pain. It varies depending on how big a move that set is trying to make, but it seems that each one does hurt, if only a little.
6) Yes, they can sometimes drive into your gums. If it does it too much, complain to the dentist and see what they say. Sometimes, it's b/c it's a bad pair; sometimes, it's what's necessary to move the teeth like they need to. Again, not a huge thing, but it happens.
7) All your friends say that you don't need braces; people (including myself) probably would've told my girlfriend the same thing. That said, it really is a huge, notable difference. If only in pictures, she tends to smile more; there was at least a subconscience thought keeping her mouth closed previously.
8) I don't think my girlfriend has salivation issues; it is possible though that she just didn't bring it up.
9) Don't lose them. You know those old movies/tv shows that show kids picking through the garbage looking for their retainers? Yeah...that's bad. The one benefit to invisalign is that sometimes you can just skip ahead to the next one; it might just hurt a LOT more.

That's all I can think of right now, but if anyone has questions post 'em here (though I probably won't be back until Monday...)
posted by inigo2 at 2:02 PM on March 2, 2006

I have invisaligns in right now. Long convoluted story follows:

I started out with regular braces in the summer of 2003. After a year or so, the orthodontist determined my teeth were too mobile for the regular braces so she switched me over to invisaligns. They were 500 dollars more expensive than the regular braces.

So anyways, invisaligns have their good and bad points:

Good:
- Take them off when you want to (to eat etc)...and no you dont have to take them off to drink, unless its something really hot!

- Mine are virtually invisible.

Bad:
- They hurt like a mutha when you change aligners (mine are every 2 weeks)

- Sometimes (not always the case) the invisalign guys screw up and over estimate the movement and send aligners that don't fit (like what just happened to me!) In this case after my 13th set of aligners, i was told #14 just doesnt fit, so i have to have a new mold taken and new invisaligns made. That has increased my treatment time by another 6 to 8 weeks. In the meantime i have to wear aligner #13 as a retainer.

- The frenectomy hurts like a mutha too...!! I had one of them done, and i couldn't eat for a coupla days.

Right now i'm a bit frustrated with orthodontia (i've been a patient for 3 years now and i'm still only about halfway done!) but i might as well finish hard!

Email me if you have any other specific questions.
posted by ramix at 2:59 PM on March 2, 2006

A good friend of mine is about a year into it. She still lisps a little. Her mouth is pretty sore when she gets a new set. I can see them -- they make her teeth weirdly shiny -- but I doubt most people notice them.

If you're not good with willpower, though, they're an expensive mistake when you "forget" to use them.
posted by desuetude at 3:15 PM on March 2, 2006

okay, i kind of want to mark ALL of these as best answer, thank you guys so much, you've all been very helpful. More experiences are definitely welcome.
posted by echo0720 at 4:00 PM on March 2, 2006

The trays don't tear up your mouth like regular braces

That sounds like reason enough. I have weird flaps of skin in my cheeks that I attribute to my braces, 10+ years ago. I may have just had a crap orthodontist, however.
posted by trevyn at 7:56 PM on March 2, 2006

I've never had Invisalign (although I have wondered all these same questions before from seeing the commercials!) but I did have conventional braces. I recall *those* hurting like crazy every time they tightned them too, and the pain of the wires sticking out in the back when they didn't cut them short enough.
posted by radioamy at 8:30 PM on March 2, 2006