You may have noticed the term ‘clear aligners’ or ‘clear braces’ appearing in the news a lot recently. But what exactly are they?

Clear aligners are series of preformed plastic braces that, during a course of treatment, will help to align or straighten your teeth.

Each course of treatment will give the patient a number of plastic aligners that they will wear in order over a period of time.

The aligners are moulded so that they apply gentle pressure and slowly move teeth into the desired position.

There are a number of benefits to using clear aligners over metal ‘fixed’ braces, such as:

More discreet
May offer reduced treatment times depending on how much movement and work is required
Can be removed when eating, helping to avoid staining of teeth.

Despite this, it is not an option available to everyone due to various reasons. And that is why it is important to consult a dentist prior to having treatment.

Clear aligners or Invisalign?

"How can you tell which clear aligner brand is right for you?"

To speak to somebody about straightening your smile, please get in touch.

Invisalign is a brand of clear aligner that is only available through dental practices.

There are, however, a variety of different brands on the market.

This is where the confusion comes in.

How can you tell which clear aligner brand is right for you?

Why are clear aligners appearing in the press?

Clear aligners have a proven history of effectively moving teeth for both adults and children, and are becoming increasingly popular. Most clear aligners are provided and directly supervised by a qualified dentist or, in our case, a Specialist in Orthodontics (braces).

Direct-to-consumer clear aligners are hitting the headlines at the moment.

‘Direct-to-consumer’ means the aligner companies bypass the dental practice and market directly to patients.

Dental leaders from the British Orthodontic Society have warned patients that they should ‘want to create a beautiful smile, but also want to create a healthy smile.’

At Pond Square Dental, we recommend all dental treatment is provided and carefully monitored by a suitably qualified dental professional.

Where does Invisalign stand?

Invisalign is one of the leading brands of clear aligners.

Launched in the late 90s, the brand has gone on to straighten the smiles of over 10 million patients worldwide.

This means it has become one of the most trusted brands in the dental industry and also gives it decades of experience to lean on and help provide the right treatment.

Not only this, Invisalign is only offered through dental practices, patients cannot get treatment directly.

This ensures a dentist will always oversee and approve any treatment, as well as be accountable.

And Invisalign continues to innovate, launching cutting-edge technology and ensuring dental practices that invest can stay right up to date.

What’s the next step? How do I get a healthy, straighter smile?

Pond Square Dental continues to invest in the latest technology to ensure it can offer patients the very best treatment.

This means that you can trust any procedure offered by one of its clinicians to be right for you.

The first step in any oral health journey is to consult a dental clinician and get a qualified opinion.

Following this Pond Square Dental can offer you an ‘intraoral’ scan of your mouth. This will create a digital impression of your teeth and enables the clinician, and Invisalign, to plan the next steps and offer you honest and reliable advice on whether treatment is right for you.