What you need to know about Adult Braces

Adult braces may be more common than you think.  There are many reasons why people are postponing orthodontics until adulthood:

* We often get moms in our office who say that they just wanted all their children to have straight teeth before they got it themselves.

* They feel that they're more responsible now - in terms of following up with appointments, oral care and treatment and, in the case of Invisalign® - wearing the trays.

* They've lived with chronic problems like headaches or jaw pain and they've finally had enough

* They didn't have coverage growing up

* etc, etc.

Whatever the reasoning behind it, it really isn't so unusual now to get braces in adulthood.  And the great news is that there are so many options nowadays, that it's easy to make a decision.

What to Expect:

In many adult cases, we recommend Invisalign® because it's virtually invisible.  Having worn Invisalign® myself, many people don't notice it until you point it out (I'm looking at you, Mom and Dad), you remove the trays in front of them (apologies to all friends and family who've seen this, LOL) or they've had Invisalign® before (it's how I've bonded with random Invisalign®-wearing strangers!)

* At ALFIE Dentistry, you can expect to be digitally scanned - many other offices take traditional impressions, which involves placing some soft material in-between your teeth, having you bite down, wait, then open your mouth up so they can remove it.  It's uncomfortable and often gag-inducing with this old-school method - so, our iTero office is really the way to go.

* You'll be shown a computerized 'preview' of how the teeth will shift, as well as get an approximated timespan of how long it'll take for treatment to be completed. 

* Once the smile design is approved by you, you'll be given a set of trays to change into every 2-weeks - each set of trays is designed to apply pressure to your teeth and to move them. 

* Every couple of weeks, you'll be booked in for a review so that we can follow up on how the teeth are shifting. 

* Depending on the anatomy of your teeth and where you want them to be moved, some 'buttons' may be used, some people get accelerators, some people have their teeth contoured or shaped and more.  Since every person is unique, Invisalign® paired with our expertise in cosmetic dentistry will offer varied solutions for mostly everyone's needs.

Call our office for a consultation today: (416) 226-6688.