If you have chosen to get Invisalign or you are still trying to decide between Invisalign and traditional braces, you might be wondering if there are ways to speed up the Invisalign process. There are! Not only can you improve the efficacy of your treatment by following the instructions of your orthodontist, there are actually treatments that will speed up the Invisalign process. Here’s what you can do to shorten the length of your treatment as much as possible:
1. Use AcceleDent.
One of the best ways to speed up the Invisalign process is by using AcceleDent. It is a system that actually helps your teeth move more efficiently, so you can switch into the next set of aligners faster, and therefore, finish your entire treatment at a much faster pace. Without AcceleDent, your teeth move simply because the aligners are putting pressure on them to move. With AcceleDent, micro pulses are distributed into the teeth, stimulating blood flow, and improving the speed at which the jawbones remodels. Your teeth move faster, sometimes up to 50% faster.
2. Wear your aligners for at least twenty-two hours every day.
When patients complain that their treatment is taking longer than they expected it to take, it is usually because they have not been wearing their aligners as frequently as they are supposed to be wearing their aligners. Most orthodontists recommend that you should wear the trays for at least twenty-two hours a day. The other two hours should give you plenty of time to eat, drink, and clean your teeth. In some situations, patients cannot wear their aligners for this length of time every single day, but for those who want their treatment to go as quickly as possible, this is one of the best ways.
3. Brush your teeth before putting your aligners back in.
While having dirty teeth is not necessarily going to slow down your treatment, having to have cavities drilled and filled or other dental work done over the course of your treatment is probably going to slow down that treatment. The bacteria and saliva in your mouth can also start to break down your aligners and if they are not regularly cleaned, using the right technique, they may become more flexible and less capable of effectively moving your teeth. Before your put your aligners back in after eating, be sure to clean your teeth.
4. Clean your aligners.
Some patients assume that they can simply use toothpaste and a toothbrush to clean their aligners, just like they use toothpaste and a toothbrush to clean their teeth. Using toothpaste can actually damage your aligners, creating tiny little scratches in them where bacteria can hide. While this might not seem like that big of a deal, especially because you are going to be switching out your aligners in the next two weeks, before that bacteria will really have a chance to break down the material of the tray, this type of damage can actually make your aligners less effective.
5. Get attachments if Dr. Gemmi or Dr. Middleberg recommends it.
When Invisalign was first introduced, it was really only effective for very minor issues. Today, the system has improved so that it can help a wide variety of people, with a wide variety of issues. Drs. Gemmi and Middleberg might recommend getting an attachment for your aligners. These are called “buttons” and they can help to speed up your treatment by putting more pressure on a specific tooth or on a range of teeth, to help move that tooth or those teeth at a faster pace. If you want straighter teeth, this is one of the best system besides AcceleDent for doing just that.
6. Be gentle with your aligners.
Over time, you might start to forget that you are even wearing aligners. This is a very common issue we see with our patients. They are diligent about wearing their aligners and become so used to wearing them that they forget that they even have aligners on their teeth. This may lead to the patient trying to eat while wearing aligners, or drinking something sugary while wearing the aligners, etc., etc. These types of actions can damage your Invisalign.
Sometimes, we will also find out that a patient took their aligners out to eat, wrapped them in a paper towel, put them in her bag, and when they removed them later, found that they were cracked or snapped in half. It is very important to be careful with your aligners. If you have to wait at all to get a replacement, this will delay your treatment. If you want to speed up the Invisalign process, you will want to be as careful with your aligners as possible.
7. Talk to your orthodontist.
If you are concerned that your treatment is not going as quickly as you want it to go, one of the best options for finding ways to speed up the Invisalign process is to talk to Dr. Gemmi or Dr. Middleberg. While the options on this list might be ideal for you, we will not know until we evaluate your case and determine whether or not you are a good candidate for something like AcceleDent, or whether improvements can be made to your daily habits that will make your treatment more effective.
If you are looking to speed up the Invisalign process, you are not alone! Some people still choose traditional braces over Invisalign because this treatment is often faster. With these options, however, you could see your Invisalign treatment significantly sped up.
