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Thread: Invisalign Review

  1. #1
    Veteran Member Santos's Avatar
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    Default Invisalign Review

    Since orthodontic questions pop up from time to time, I thought I’d post my experience with the Invisalign system.


    I’m almost ¾ of the way finished with my treatment. I can’t say enough about these aligners. My top front teeth had a very nasty overlap, my bottom teeth weren’t too bad, with only two teeth being a little crooked.


    I was skeptical that Invisaligns would work on my upper teeth—like I said, they were pretty damn crooked. However, I’m amazed at how quickly they have straightened my teeth.


    I change sets every two weeks. I’ve had no serious pain; although, there is a bit of soreness when I put a new set it. The soreness last no longer than 1 to 2 days.


    Total cost was close to 4K. The regular treatment will take me less than a year. Although, my Dr. tells me I will be wearing the aligners at night for a few years.

    One side benefit, I’ve lost about 9 lbs because I don’t snack like I used to. You really have to brush your teeth each time you eat before putting the aligners back on. So snacking on something like a candy bar and then brushing my teeth is one PIA I can do without. As it is, I’m brushing my teeth at least 3 to 4 times a day after regular meals.


    Anyway, I’ve very happy with my results so far.


    Oh, and not one person has noticed I was wearing them
    Last edited by Santos; 03-05-2006 at 11:37 PM.

  2. #2
    God/dess
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    That's awesome...I'll have to speak with my dentist about them next time I go.

    I was told I'd be a good candidate a few visits ago, but I had wondered how they worked (and nobody that I knew had them).

    Thanks for the review!

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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Yes; thanks so much for the info; I am pretty sure I'm gonna have to get some too. Glad to know they aren't so bad!!
    Grinding is for coffee and meat.
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    God/dess VenusGoddess's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    YAY!! I can't wait to get mine!!

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    Veteran Member Angel75217's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    I don't have insurance. Would it be any where near the same price, and how much did you pay at a time, or did you pay it all at once?
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    Featured Member bikinigirl04's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    i've thought about these before...but then i heard about lumineers, those veneers that are supposed to be better than regular ones,and those can be used to fill spaces and whatnot. so i might check those out b/c i have not only the little gap in front but also i have little short teeth, i want regular sized teeth, lol! good to know though, about the invisalign braces.

  7. #7
    Featured Member desavirsire's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    I have them also and i have to agree they are great!!! The only part of the process that sucks is when you have to have space made so your teeth have room to move. You literally have somone sawing at your tooth to make it smaller, not fun!!!

  8. #8
    God/dess Emily's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Quote Originally Posted by bikinigirl04
    i've thought about these before...but then i heard about lumineers, those veneers that are supposed to be better than regular ones,and those can be used to fill spaces and whatnot. so i might check those out b/c i have not only the little gap in front but also i have little short teeth, i want regular sized teeth, lol! good to know though, about the invisalign braces.
    Lumineers are good, but more important than the brand of porceclain used (there are lots of good ones), is the dentist. Any dentist can do invisilign since most of the work is done in a lab, but with veneers, a dentist really needs to have a lot of experience.

    If he doesn't prep enough, they will be too thick (think of acrylic nails....a good nail tech makes them thin and real-looking....a lazy or less experienced one will give you those huge hunks of acrylic.) They also have to be perfectly aligned or they can break easily, or worse, give you constant headaches.

    There is no board certification for costmetic dentistry. Any dentist can do them and many do just because there is so much money to be made with them. I've read a bunch of horror stories on botched veneers.

    There is someone shaving off your natural enamel and you can't get it back, so a lot of times it's probably too extreme. But if you want results like yesterday, have a weird shape, color and they are all jacked up (like me before I got my veneers), then maybe veneers are right for you.

    okay, that's the end of my tirade. I don't even know how I got started on it, but I see people getting veneers that shouldn't (like Hilary Duff) and it's not worth it because there are huge risks.

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    Featured Member bikinigirl04's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    supposedly with lumineers there is no shaving of your regular teeth.


    http://www.cerinate.com/index.html


    Quote Originally Posted by Emily
    Lumineers are good, but more important than the brand of porceclain used (there are lots of good ones), is the dentist. Any dentist can do invisilign since most of the work is done in a lab, but with veneers, a dentist really needs to have a lot of experience.

    If he doesn't prep enough, they will be too thick (think of acrylic nails....a good nail tech makes them thin and real-looking....a lazy or less experienced one will give you those huge hunks of acrylic.) They also have to be perfectly aligned or they can break easily, or worse, give you constant headaches.

    There is no board certification for costmetic dentistry. Any dentist can do them and many do just because there is so much money to be made with them. I've read a bunch of horror stories on botched veneers.

    There is someone shaving off your natural enamel and you can't get it back, so a lot of times it's probably too extreme. But if you want results like yesterday, have a weird shape, color and they are all jacked up (like me before I got my veneers), then maybe veneers are right for you.

    okay, that's the end of my tirade. I don't even know how I got started on it, but I see people getting veneers that shouldn't (like Hilary Duff) and it's not worth it because there are huge risks.

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    God/dess Emily's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    it specifies it doesn't remove "sensitive" tooth structure, but teeth are moderately etched.

    In either case, not shaving enough can be a bad thing....making them too thick. And it is an extreme measure because you can't go back to your old teeth.

    Their representation of veneers isn't very accurate. Maybe some, but not all look like that. I don't know why they say percelan veneers stain...that's not true! And I experienced no pain with mine. Sure, there are live nerves under my porcelain, but there are under natural enamel. As long as you cover it with porcelain, you don't feel it.

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    Featured Member bikinigirl04's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    ahh. i see now.
    lol they say there is no grinding or shaving...but the tooth is "moderately etched", i wonder what the difference is?

  12. #12
    Veteran Member Santos's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Quote Originally Posted by Angel75217
    I don't have insurance. Would it be any where near the same price, and how much did you pay at a time, or did you pay it all at once?
    I'm not sure how the pricing works, but I'm fairly confident the range would be 3K to 4K. I like my dentist, so I didn't do any price shopping.

    I had to pay 2K up front. I was told this was to cover the lab costs. Then I paid off the rest when I started with my first set. But I'm sure many places would work out some sort of financing.

    I'm pretty sure most insurance plans would not cover these since it's a cosmetic procedure.

  13. #13
    Veteran Member Santos's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Quote Originally Posted by desavirsire
    I have them also and i have to agree they are great!!! The only part of the process that sucks is when you have to have space made so your teeth have room to move. You literally have somone sawing at your tooth to make it smaller, not fun!!!
    Yes, my dentist did this also, but it's been minimal. Personally, I didn't feel any discomfort at all, but I'm sure it varies from person to person.

    I forgot to mention that I have to visit my dentist every 6 weeks to pick up my next group of aligners. I get 3 sets per 6 week visit. If adjustments are needed, my dentist does it during this visit. I'm in the office 15 minutes tops.

  14. #14
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Trivia: Did you know Invisalign is made in Costa Rica?

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    Member NewGirl9's Avatar
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    Thumbs up Re: Invisalign Review

    I have to second pretty much everything said in this original thread. I've had Invisalign for about a month, and my bottom (wayway crooked) teeth have already started to even out.

    I also noticed a major decrease in snacking!

    Mine were $4,200, including professional whitening at the end of the process. I had the option to pay only $1500 up front, but opted to pay $2000 to cut down my monthly payments a bit. It was a big expense... I was torn between a BA and Invisalign and decided my smile would be the better investment for now.

  16. #16
    AudreyLeigh
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    This is good to know. I was going to get braces but smoke and drink coffee and was told that i should get invisalign so I dont stain my teeth.

    I was going to get the spreader to push my smile out... you know where they put braces behind your teeth... anyone know if invisalign can do this or if Ill need to get that and then get the invisaligh to re-straighten them?

  17. #17
    Member NewGirl9's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Audrey:

    I suggested inside ("lingual") braces to two Orthos, and they both said that those were basically an "80's thing" that isn't very common anymore. I'm not sure if that's because they were found ineffective or if the demand just wasn't there.

    My bottom teeth were pretty jacked (a couple bad overlaps- definitely had a lack of space) and my Ortho said invisalign would work out fine. It's only been a month, and so far, he's right.

    Invisalign will really help you with the smoking/coffee drinking- that is, if you're trying to cut down. The invisalign would get tinted from the smoke and coffee, so you'd be forced to take it out, brush your teeth, and put it back in every time you smoke/drink.

  18. #18
    AudreyLeigh
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    well the 80s are back, arent they? My aunt had those inside braces and finished with them and now has regular braces on. it made a HUGE impact on her smile... i have really narrow teeth but a wide smile and would love my mouth to be 'filled out' thats the only reason id get braces because i have nice teeth just not 'perfect'

    Do you have to wear a retainer after invisalign like with regular braces?

  19. #19
    Veteran Member Santos's Avatar
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    Default Re: Invisalign Review

    Quote Originally Posted by AudreyLeigh
    Do you have to wear a retainer after invisalign like with regular braces?
    Yes, or at least that's what my dentist told me. According to my Dr., I will use the last set of my regular Invisalign aligners as the "retainer".

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