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You have done a lot of work to get the perfect smile. You wore your Invisalign aligner trays and cared for your teeth, and now your treatment is done. You still need to take care of your teeth to keep your beautiful smile. Keeps these things in mind when you think about your oral care routine.

Retainers

Many patients do require a retainer after Invisalign treatment. This will be based on your unique situation. If a retainer is recommended by Dr. Daniel Ma, use it as directed. Retainers prevent your teeth from shifting back into their original position. You should also avoid hard, crunchy foods for the first couple of weeks as your teeth adjust. For younger patients, retainers are normally used until the wisdom teeth come in or are extracted.

Brushing and Flossing

Brushing and flossing must be part of your daily oral care. Flossing helps remove the plaque, which becomes tartar or calculus. This build up can lead to gingivitis and gum disease. Your gums may be more sensitive for a week or two after your orthodontic work is completed. A warm salt water rinse may relieve discomfort.

Your teeth may be slightly sensitive for a short time. They have been protected by your Invisalign aligner trays and now are fully exposed. You might want to try a sensitive toothpaste to get through the transition. Just ask; we will be glad to recommend the best type for your needs. If your teeth are stained, a professional whitening treatment can be considered.

Regular Dental Checkups

You still need to have regular dental exams. Professional cleanings and X-rays make sure that both your teeth and gums stay healthy so you can keep your teeth for life. If cavities or other problems are found, they can be taken care of quickly.

If you have any questions about how to care for your teeth after your Invisalign program, please ask our Vancouver, BC team. We want you to keep your healthy smile and enjoy the results of your Invisalign treatment.

Although teeth seem to be solidly fixed in their sockets (at least they don’t wobble when we chew!), all teeth can easily be moved if Dr. Daniel Ma and our staff attach brackets and wires to them called braces. In the past, all braces were made of stainless steel, but today’s advanced dental technology gives people the option of wearing transparent, acrylic mouth trays called Invisalign®, or relying on traditional metal braces for correcting malocclusions.

Brackets, Slots, and Arch Wires – Oh My!

When light pressure is consistently exerted on teeth, they will gradually move in the direction of the force. For example, affixing brackets to front teeth and threading a flexible, metal wire through tiny slots on the front of the brackets allows the orthodontist to tighten this arch wire enough to initiate desired movement of teeth. Generally, orthodontic patients visit our office once a month to have this wire tightened to keep teeth moving in the desired direction.

Tissues surrounding the teeth that experience pressure from arch wires will slowly (and, for the most part, painlessly) stretch, and allow the socket to enlarge so the tooth and its root become looser temporarily. This allows the root to move without causing bleeding or pain. Once Dr. Daniel Ma and our staff are satisfied with the repositioning of teeth, we will remove the braces and let bone material fill in the socket so that teeth are solidified into their new (and straighter) positions.

Clear Braces vs. Traditional Braces

Both types of orthodontic corrective devices move teeth in the same manner: by applying a continual force against teeth. Clear aligners, like Invisalign, are mouth trays made of hard acrylic material that people wear for at least 23 hours a day. Unlike metal braces, Invisalign can be removed for eating and brushing purposes and the aligners are nearly invisible because of their transparency.

Invisalign aligners are usually reserved for people with gaps between their teeth or whose teeth are only slightly crooked. Traditional metal braces are often necessary when severe malocclusion exists and requires more pressure than Invisalign offers.

How Orthodontic Treatment Works

Orthodontic treatment works by applying gentle forces to teeth. The forces can be exerted with a variety of appliances. They can be removable retainers with springs and expansion devices or traditional fixed braces with wires. Clear removable plastic aligners like Invisalign® apply force by using a series of trays changed every seven to ten days. When a force is applied to teeth, the teeth respond by moving slowly.

Why orthodontic treatment?

You might need orthodontic treatment for several reasons:

• The most obvious reason is if your teeth are crowded. Crowding makes it difficult to clean your teeth and gums.
• Orthodontic treatment is also needed when there is a poor relationship between the upper and lower teeth. The teeth might be in cross bite where an upper tooth is trapped behind a lower.
• The upper front teeth protrude too far forward compared to the lower teeth and this excessive overjet might make the upper front teeth more prone to trauma and affect facial aesthetics.
• This poor relationship might extend to the jaws. If the lower jaw protrudes too far forward, this underbite would require orthodontic intervention.

Length of Treatment

Orthodontic treatment time varies based on the severity of the malocclusion. Simple cases treated with a removable retainer may only take six months, whereas complex cases with severe crowding and an excessive overjet may take up to 36 months. Most cases fall somewhere in this range.

In addition to the clinical details of a case, patient cooperation can affect orthodontic treatment time. The greater the patient cooperation the better the chance that the treatment time is less than estimated. Cooperation can take many forms:

• In cases of traditional braces, eating hard, sticky, or crunchy food can loosen brackets and deform wires, which will slow down treatment time.
• Elastic wear is needed frequently during treatment to improve the relationship between the upper and lower teeth. Noncompliance with elastics will also extend treatment time.
• In the case of clear removable plastic aligners, they need to be worn 22hours a day. Anything less will cause the aligners to not fit, make treatment take longer and potentially compromise the final result.

In cases where patients are cooperative with diet, elastic wear, and or aligner wear, the treatment time can be significantly reduced. The treatment result—your smile—will also likely be better.

Orthodontic Treatment at Dr. Ma’s Office

Visits to our Vancouver orthodontic office for adjustments can be every four to six weeks for traditional braces and six to ten weeks for clear removable aligners.

When you undergo orthodontic treatment with Dr. Ma and our team, you’ll notice a few unique features:

1. We are a small practice that delivers personal service and greater attention to detail. Dr. Ma provides frequent feedback to patients and parents during the treatment journey.
2. We are open on Saturdays, which give patients and parents more appointment time options.
3. We are a multilingual office fluent in English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog, and Telugu.

Please contact Dr. Ma’s Vancouver orthodontic office to schedule an appointment and learn more about the treatments we provide.

One of the greatest advantages to using Invisalign is that it provides maximum results with minimal impact on your everyday life. Invisalign is comfortable, easy to insert, and simple to remove. Because you can remove Invisalign aligners, you can enjoy all your favorite foods and beverages without worries about getting food stuck in the wires and brackets of traditional braces.

Eating and Invisalign

While the aligner is durable and strong, you should remove it before you eat or drink beverages, as the chewing action inside your mouth can break, crack, or distort the aligner. Even minute damage to the Invisalign tray will prevent it from aligning your teeth properly. Furthermore, eating with Invisalign in your mouth can be quite messy.

Beverages and Invisalign

Repeated exposure to hot liquids may also cause the Invisalign aligner to distort. This distortion changes the shape of your aligner in a way that will affect how it straightens your teeth. Contact our Vancouver, BC office if your Invisalign aligner has distorted after consuming a hot beverage.

Fluids can settle inside the aligner to “bathe” the teeth. Bathing teeth in acidic fluids can be especially problematic, as the acids can wear away tooth enamel. Exposure to acidic fluids is not normally a problem, as saliva neutralizes and buffers the acid then washes it away. Wearing an aligner, however, prevents the saliva from doing those jobs, increasing your risk for tooth decay.

Colored drinks may also change the color of your teeth. Most discoloration is temporary but stubborn stains may occur.

To prevent discoloration and tooth decay, brush your teeth after every meal or beverage before putting in your Invisalign aligners. If you do not have access to clean water, chew sugar-free gum to remove bacteria, acid, and food particles from your teeth. As a last resort, you may leave your aligners out for an hour or two until you can brush and floss properly. Before inserting Invisalign, rinse the aligner in lukewarm water or use the Invisalign cleaning kit.

Contact our Vancouver, BC office for more information about eating and Invisalign.