What are Clear Aligners?

Clear aligners are orthodontic appliances that consist of transparent dental braces that are used to correct teeth. They are very innovative and attractive because they are more aesthetic than traditional braces, which usually cover most of the teeth. But what is it? What are its advantages?

What is orthodontics?

Orthodontics is a branch of dentistry that studies and treats abnormal size, position, and shape of teeth and jaws.

It aims to correct the changes to achieve optimal oral health and harmony between the smile and the correct alignment of the teeth.

Orthodontists usually resort to various devices for correcting teeth. The most common devices are braces. These are metal or ceramic structures that dentists attach to the teeth to correct their location.

Above them, orthodontists place arches of varying thickness. These arches allow patients to move their teeth as they create frictional forces with braces.

Thanks to scientific advances, orthodontics has come a long way and has been able to make these movements possible through invisible aligners that cover the teeth. Thus, they are almost invisible.

Orthodontics is a method of treatment that helps to correct disorders of the maxillofacial structure.

What are clear aligners?

This is an orthodontic method that involves the use of invisible braces, called aligners. To use this method of treatment, the orthodontist must make a model of the patient’s teeth, as well as a 3D image of the teeth and a computerized model of the current and desired position of the teeth.

The aligners are made of thermoplastic material with a thickness of 0.5 mm, which means that they are barely visible. To help the teeth move, in addition to transparent straighteners, orthodontists attach small transparent balls to the teeth, called splints.

Tires help aligners make the movements they need to make. They need to be replaced with other aligners within 10-15 days. Treatment is from four months to two years, depending on the degree of correction required by each patient.

It is important to know that this type of orthodontic treatment cannot solve all problems. It is recommended to make small adjustments, rotation correction, etc. Orthodontists recommend traditional braces for people who need significant correction.

Advantages of clear aligners:

1. They look very aesthetically pleasing.
2. They help avoid friction, wounds, and injuries that can cause traditional braces and arches. Thus, it is a more comfortable treatment for patients.
3. They allow you to improve hygiene. Before cleaning, patients need to remove the straighteners, which allows them to brush their teeth properly as if they do not have braces. Brushing your teeth with traditional braces is more difficult, as a result of which plaque accumulates near the gums, causing gingivitis.
4. Dentists create aligners using a model of the patient’s teeth, ie the treatment is completely individually adapted.
5. Thanks to better hygiene, patients are less likely to develop tooth decay, gingivitis, and blemishes.
6. For small changes, transparent straighteners achieve the same results as traditional braces. In fact, in some cases, the results can be much faster than with regular braces.

Disadvantages of clear aligners

1. To achieve the desired effect, patients should wear equalizers for at least 20 hours a day. They can be removed only before eating and brushing your teeth.
2. If the patient forgets to wear them, treatment may take longer and may even worsen the condition.
3. Patients with bruxism wear equalizers, they need to be changed more often.
4. Clear aligners are more expensive than traditional braces.
5. Both children and adults can use this method of treatment. You should always remember that orthodontics is a secondary treatment for other pathologies of the oral cavity, you must first take care of fillings, brushing teeth, root canals, and other oral health problems.

Clear aligners are an innovative orthodontic method of treatment. They enable patients to achieve the desired results and improve aesthetics and comfort.

By predicting treatment with 3D software, orthodontists can be much more accurate in their treatment, as it allows them to monitor the patient’s progress much more.

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