Treatment
Clear alignment
Moving teeth rather than covering them. Slower, gentler, and it removes nothing.
What it is
A series of clear trays, each one slightly different from the last, worn twenty-two hours a day. Teeth move a fraction of a millimetre per tray, and after nine to eighteen months they are where they should be.
It is the least destructive thing in cosmetic dentistry: nothing is drilled and nothing is removed. For crowding, spacing and mild bite problems it does a better job than veneers.
The catch is compliance. Trays worn twelve hours a day do not work — they simply do not move teeth. We will be straight with you about that at the consultation rather than at month six.
Suited to
- Crowding, whether or not it has been treated before
- Gaps between front teeth
- A relapse after braces in your teens
- Preparation before veneers or implants
And when it is not
Severe bite problems and cases needing teeth removed are better handled with fixed braces, and sometimes with a specialist we will refer you to rather than treat here. Aligners can do a lot; they cannot do everything, and clinics that claim otherwise produce results that relapse.
Step by step
How it goes.
Scan and simulate
A digital scan, and a simulation of where each tooth ends up. You see the result before you commit.
Trays
Made and delivered in one batch. Each is worn for seven to ten days.
Reviews
Every six to eight weeks, twenty minutes each, mostly to confirm the movement is tracking the plan.
Retention
A bonded wire behind the front teeth and a night guard. Skip this and they drift back — this is not optional.