Invisalign in Redmond

Invisalign is the most commonly-used alternative to metal braces. Instead of metal wires and brackets, it uses a series of clear plastic aligners. These aligners look similar to a retainer, or a night guard that you would wear for teeth grinding.

Each set of aligners is built to gently shift the position of your teeth. By swapping through multiple sets of aligners regularly, you’ll move your teeth into a healthier alignment. If you’re a good candidate for treatment with this method of orthodontics, Invisalign can improve your smile and your bite just, just like braces.

First, you’ll come into our Redmond office for an orthodontic consultation with Dr. Bickel, who will determine if you’re a good candidate for Invisalign. If you’re approved, he will begin working with Invisalign to develop your customized smile treatment plan.

You’ll come back in a few weeks to pick up your first several sets of aligners, and to get further instructions from Dr. Bickel. Usually, each set of aligners must be worn for about 2 weeks for 20-22+ hours per day.

About every 4-6 weeks, you’ll come in for a consultation at our office so that Dr. Bickel can check on your progress. Then, you’ll get your next several sets of aligners, and you’ll be sent home.

This basic process will be repeated until your smile and bite have reached their ideal alignment. Then, you’ll see Dr. Bickel for a final appointment in Redmond, and you’ll get a set of retainers that you’ll need to wear to keep your teeth properly aligned after your treatment.

Most patients need about 20-24 sets of Invisalign trays to correct their smile and their bite. Each set is typically worn for about 2 weeks, so this puts the average treatment time of Invisalign at under a year.

However, this can vary. Those with fewer orthodontic issues may require less time for treatment, while those with more serious teeth alignment problems may need more than a year to correct their smile. To see if you’re a good candidate and to get an estimate of how long your treatment might take, contact Redmond Art of Dentistry for an appointment with Dr. Daniel Bickel now.

A good candidate for Invisalign is someone who is in good oral and overall health. Patients need to have sufficiently healthy gums and bone tissue to safely shift the teeth.

If you have active tooth decay or gum disease, this will need to be treated before you can move forward with Invisalign treatment.If you have had gum disease in the past and have deteriorated gums or bone tissue, this may rule you out as a candidate for Invisalign unless you can undergo grafting that restores these tissues. Believe it or not, having missing teeth does not affect your ability to undergo Invisalign treatment. 

We recommend that you wait to replace the tooth after Invisalign has shifted your teeth into the proper alignment. Because Invisalign largely depends on compliance with wearing your aligners for at least 22 hours a day for the duration of your treatment which can take months or years, our Redmond team recommend Invisalign for adults.

Some adolescents may be eligible for Invisalign if they can comply with wearing and cleaning their aligners. While Invisalign can address a variety of alignment issues of the teeth and jaw, we are ultimately limited in our ability to treat severe malocclusions. 

Invisalign can correct misaligned bites with the help of attachments and elastics, but if you have a severe misalignment, you may be a better candidate for braces. 

Invisalign can cause slight discomfort, especially in the beginning, when you first start to wear your aligners. The aligners are shifting your teeth, so this is going to cause some feelings of tenderness. 

If you can feel sensitivity or a sore feeling, this indicates the aligners are doing their job! The good news is, this discomfort will alleviate with time. The aligners are the tightest when you first switch to a new set. 

As your teeth continue to shift over 2 weeks, they will not be as tight and the pressure will lessen. There are a few things you can try to reduce your discomfort through this process, such as:

- Putting your aligners in at night
- Sucking on an ice cube
- Take anti-inflammatory pain medication
- Wear your aligners for 22 hours a day
- Drink cold water

To care for your aligners, keep them clean and store them properly. Remember to take them out before eating or drinking anything other than water. Do not drink hot liquids with your aligners in. Rinse your aligners out when removing them and before placing them back in. 

Remember to brush and floss your teeth before putting your aligners back in. While you aren’t wearing your aligners, store them in their proper case. 

To clean your aligners, use a denture cleaning solution or Invisalign cleaning crystals and a soft-bristle toothbrush to gently scrub your aligners. Never use toothpaste on your aligners. You should soak them in a denture cleaner or Invisalign cleaning crystal solution once a day for 15 minutes.