Invisalign - Topeka & Silver Lake, KS

How is Invisalign Teen Different?

Invisalign Teen includes a special feature designed just for younger patients – blue compliance dots. These dots gradually fade over time, allowing them (and you) to track whether the aligners are being worn long enough. This simple distinction makes it easier for your teen to stay on track with their treatment and wear their aligners for the full 20-22 hours every day.

Is Invisalign Right for Your Teen?

If your teen wants a nice, straight smile but is hesitant about traditional braces, Invisalign Teen could be the perfect solution. The clear, removable aligners allow them to eat whatever they want, play sports, and avoid the “metal mouth” while socializing. With the flexibility of Invisalign Teen, your child can concentrate on what matters to them instead of focusing on their teeth.

That said, the next best step is to schedule an appointment with us. Dr. Michel or Dr. Weber will examine your child’s mouth, discuss goals, and see if Invisalign Teen can give them the orthodontic care they need.

The Benefits of Invisalign Teen

Invisalign Teen offers several advantages tailored to teenagers and their busy schedules:

• Removability: If your child is active in sports or other extracurriculars where braces would be inconvenient, Invisalign Teen can be taken out. This allows them to wear mouthguards or play instruments with ease.
• Clear Appearance: The clear aligners ensure your teen never feels the need to hide their smile in social situations or during big events like school dances or picture days.
• Better Oral Hygiene: Since there are no brackets or wires to brush around, your child will be able to manage their oral care more easily.
• Shorter Check-ups: Less time spent in our office means more time to study and socialize!

Improved Comfort

One of the biggest draws of Invisalign is that there aren’t any metal brackets and wires. However, that’s not the only reason this discreet orthodontic treatment is pain-free. Each of the aligners are custom-made to fit the unique contours of your mouth, dramatically reducing your chances of experiencing soft tissue irritation. If any of your trays have a sharp edge, you can always use dental wax too!

See-Through Trays

Arguably the biggest benefit of Invisalign is that the aligners are see-through, making them virtually undetectable when worn. In fact, it will be hard for even those closest to you to tell when you are and aren’t wearing them! Just make sure to commit to good habits, like cleaning your aligners after each meal, to ensure they stay clean and clear.

Hassle-Free Oral Hygiene

Patients with traditional braces often need to buy special oral hygiene products, like interproximal toothbrushes and pre-threaded floss. The same cannot be said for those with Invisalign! That’s because you don’t need to maneuver around brackets and wires – just take the aligners out and complete your oral hygiene regimen as you usually would.

Quick Follow-Up Visits

Not only are there fewer follow-up visits with Invisalign, but they are significantly shorter as well. In fact, the vast majority will only take 15 minutes or so! This is especially helpful for career-driven professionals, teens with demanding schedules, and busy parents who have jam-packed calendars and can’t spend 45+ minutes at our office every month.

Improved Confidence

Many patients with crooked and spaced-out teeth want a straight smile, but very few want to wear metal brackets and wires to achieve this goal. Fortunately, Invisalign is just as effective as traditional braces but considerably more discreet. That means that you won’t have to hide your smile during your teeth-straightening journey – you can proudly display it every step of the way!

Non-Invasive Treatment

Sometimes, tooth extractions were necessary with traditional braces. Invisalign takes a less invasive approach with alternatives like IPR, which involves removing a sliver of your enamel to make room for the movement of your teeth. There are several other advancements in the dental field that make the entire treatment experience more comfortable as well, including digital impressions instead of putty ones.

Wearing Your Trays

There’s one important rule all patients need to follow: wear your aligners for 20-22 hours a day. This is important because your trays only work while you’re wearing them. If you consistently fall short of this goal, then there’s a good chance that your teeth won’t track properly. That’s why we recommend only taking them out to eat or complete your oral hygiene regimen.

Cleaning Your Aligners

Although your aligners will be clear when you first take them out of the packaging, they won’t stay that way if you adopt bad habits, like keeping them on while drinking coffee or not cleaning them throughout the day. The good news is that preventing stubborn stains from surfacing is relatively easy: use clean, lukewarm water and a soft-bristled toothbrush to clean them after breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Eating & Drinking

Since there aren’t any dietary restrictions with Invisalign, the “rules” boil down to this: remove your aligners any time you eat or drink anything other than water. It’s also important that we mention here that you should do your best not to over-indulge in starchy and sugary foods since they increase your risk of tooth decay. If you develop a cavity, then your treatment will be paused until you receive the necessary restorative care.

Losing or Damaging a Tray

Although losing or damaging a tray requires immediate attention, do your best not to panic. Situations like these happen all the time, so our Topeka dental team can help you find a solution relatively easily. With that said, we encourage patients who can’t find their aligners to retrace their steps, starting from the place they last remember seeing them. If they truly are lost, then do the same thing you would if they broke: give us a call.

Routine Check-Ins

Your routine check-in appointments will be every six or eight weeks, and each one serves an important purpose. First, they allow us to take new scans of your teeth and monitor how your teeth are tracking. Second, they give you an opportunity to periodically ask questions about your treatment. Third, we use these appointments to provide you with your next batch of aligners. That way, you don’t have to keep track of all of them at once.

Factors that Affect the Cost of Invisalign

It isn’t until you call to schedule a consultation with Dr. Michel that we will be able to provide a reliable cost estimate for your Invisalign treatment. It’s important to remember that no two patients are alike, so your situation will likely be very different from someone else. During your visit, we will examine your oral cavity to determine the problem. We will then consider various factors that will be incorporated into the overall cost for care, some of which include:

• The duration of treatment – Yes, Invisalign aligners are known for their ability to produce faster results but depending on what you need to have done to your teeth, it may take longer, especially if additional appliances or procedures are needed to ensure optimal results (i.e., tooth extraction, etc.).
• The severity of your case – Do you only have one or two small gaps between your teeth that need to be closed? Are you living with a severe overbite or crossbite? No matter the situation, you can expect the timeline and cost for treatment to vary. Naturally, it is much less expensive to close the gap between two upper front teeth than it is to completely realign a person’s overbite.
• The numbers of aligners you will need – When looking at your smile, we will determine if you need clear aligners for your top teeth, bottom teeth, or both, as how many aligners you will need will greatly determine the cost.

Invisalign vs. Smile Direct Club™: Which Costs More?

When it comes to cost, it’s not surprising that Smile Direct Club costs much less than seeing a qualified professional for Invisalign (i.e., $2,000 as opposed to between $3,000 to $8,000). You may be thinking it’s best to just do it yourself and trust a company that promises outstanding results. Unfortunately, you could do more harm than good to your smile if you’re not careful. Here’s how:

1. You’re not evaluated by a qualified professional throughout treatment.
2. You’re responsible for generating your own tooth impressions, which can be less accurate or precise and result in ill-fitting aligners.
3. You won’t have a professional to turn to if you are dealing with a problem.
4. You’re left to manage your treatment and ensure everything is moving along smoothly.

Instead of relying on what you believe to be “good progress,” it’s best to invest in Invisalign simply because you can trust the process when seeing a qualified professional to administer care.

Does Dental Insurance Cover Invisalign?

Depending on your dental insurance company, they may or may not offer orthodontic coverage. If they do, it may only cover traditional orthodontics, not Invisalign. But this isn’t always the case, which is why it’s best to reach out to a representative at your dental insurance company to make sure. If they do agree to pay a portion of the cost, they may agree to cover up to 50%, which is extremely helpful, but you’ll need to have an alternative way to pay for any out-of-pocket expenses you might incur along the way.

But before you start looking at your available credit card balances, consider how you may be able to use your FSA (if you have one) to pay a portion of your orthodontic treatment.

Options for Making Invisalign Affordable

Uninsured? Worried you won’t be able to pay for your Invisalign aligners? Before you give up and cancel your scheduled consultation, consider how our Smile Savings Plan or flexible financing can help! With our Smile Savings Plan, you can pay one low annual fee for access to basic dental care as well as discounts on other available treatments.

If you’d prefer to break up your treatment into more manageable payments, you can always see if your eligible to enroll in a low or no interest payment plan through CareCredit. Offering flexible financing, you can easily stay within your budget while working to straighten teeth in Topeka and Silver Lake.

The team at Michel Dental is ready to help you take the next step. From offering guidance and insight to better understand the cost of your treatment to maximizing your benefits and assisting you in the process of enrolling in flexible financing, we’re here to ensure your smile gets the treatment it deserves at a cost that is affordable.

Crowded Teeth

Crowded, overlapping teeth are a threat to your oral health because they can interfere with your bite and cause jaw pain. They can also be challenging to clean, thereby increasing your risk of cavities and gum disease. Invisalign, possibly after one or more extractions, can shift the teeth so each one has the space it needs to function optimally.

Gaps Between Teeth

Large spaces between the teeth may be the result of natural bone development, bad habits during childhood, and other factors. Regardless of what caused your gapped teeth, your condition may leave your gums vulnerable to harm. You might also feel self-conscious about your appearance. Invisalign may be able to move your teeth closer together.

Overbite

An overbite occurs when the top teeth jut out too far in front of the bottom teeth. This issue can contribute to speech problems, TMJ disorder, undesirable facial aesthetics, and a higher risk of dental damage. Invisalign, usually with the help of appropriate accessories, may play a role in correcting an overbite.

Underbite

When the bottom teeth protrude in front of the top teeth, it is known as an underbite. This issue is usually the result of genetics or oral trauma. It can increase the risk of sleep apnea, mouth breathing, and chewing difficulties. Usually, Invisalign, with the help of rubber bands, can help to train the lower jaw to rest in its proper position.

Crossbite

When some of the bottom teeth are in front of the top teeth, it is called a crossbite. Since the teeth contact one another at odd angles, they are at a greater risk of tooth damage, gum disease, speech issues, and other complications. Often, Invisalign aligners and select accessories can help to correct a crossbite.

Open Bite

When your back teeth are touching one another, is there a gap between your top and bottom front teeth? This issue is called an open bite. It often occurs due to poor bone development or bad habits during childhood, such as prolonged thumb-sucking. In many cases, Invisalign aligners are able to close an open bite and produce improved oral function.