For years, aligning your teeth meant having to deal with months or even years of unsightly metal braces cemented to your teeth. Along with this, you had to have frequent adjustments, which meant tightening wires to get the correct position and spacing. Though there have been advances to conventional braces, the fundamentals remain unchanged.
Invisalign® stepped onto the scene with a completely new approach to aligning teeth. Instead of permanently cemented bands, Invisalign uses a series of removable form-fitting aligners that you wear on your teeth. Every two weeks or so, you put on a new set of slightly adjusted aligners, and with each set, your teeth are gradually guided into their ideal positions. What’s more, these appliances are virtually invisible.
The only people who will notice your changing smile will be those who you let in on the secret. You can take out your Invisalign aligners when you eat and clean your teeth, and you can put them back in so they can work their magic the rest of the day.
You’ll know all of this if you’ve heard of the Invisalign system before, but you may not know how many alignment issues this system can address. While there are some extreme conditions Invisalign may not be able to fix, Invisalign, which is offered by Rifkin Dental in Yorktown Heights and Carmel, New York, can fix the vast majority of smile flaws.
Normally, your upper front teeth extend past your lower teeth. This overlap can be excessive however, leading to uneven wear, jaw pain, and even gum disease. Prominent front teeth can also make you self-conscious about your smile.
The exact opposite of overbites, underbites can make it hard to chew and can even affect your speech. Severe underbites may require surgery as well as realignment, but Invisalign is often able to handle these realignments after surgery.
Your top row of teeth are normally positioned a little outside your bottom row of teeth. A crossbite occurs when this offset is not enough, or when your upper teeth are inside the bottom row. This can also put you at an increased risk of chipping your teeth and developing gum disease and abnormal tooth wear. Invisalign can handle the complex changes needed to turn a crossbite into a beautiful smile.
An open bite is where sections of your teeth don’t meet. This, too, can also affect your speech, and Invisalign can create the realignments necessary to bring your teeth together.
Tooth gaps can often lead to gum disease and food getting trapped in your teeth. Overcrowding can lead to the inability to brush and floss properly, thus leading to tooth decay. Both conditions can lead to other problems, including temporomandibular joint disorder, if your teeth prevent normal motion of your jaw.
If you’ve always dreamed of a radiant smile, book an appointment online or over the phone with Rifkin Dental to see if Invisalign can help you.
