If you need an orthodontic treatment, you’re likely researching all of your available options. Our Aberdeen cosmetic dentists offer several orthodontic options to choose from including traditional braces, clear braces, Invisalign, ClearCorrect, and early preventive orthodontic treatments. Unless you’re a young child, you really only have two options for orthodontics: ClearCorrect/Invisalign or traditional braces. Most patients want to know if Invisalign is better than braces. To help you understand if Invisalign is the right choice for you, we’ve compiled some of the main differences between the two for you to compare.
Find out whether braces or Invisalign are right for you.
Comfort
When it comes to comfort, you can’t compare traditional braces to Invisalign or ClearCorrect. Both Invisalign and ClearCorrect use thin smooth plastic aligners to straighten teeth. On the flip side, traditional braces whether clear or metal require sharp brackets and wires to straighten your teeth. It’s common to cut up the sides of your cheeks, tongue, or lips on traditional braces during the first few weeks of your treatment. Once you build up the callous inside your mouth, you won’t notice scrapes as often in your mouth.
However, when it comes to the pain associated with pulling your teeth into their correct position, Invisalign and ClearCorrect are still much more comfortable than traditional braces. Since you switch aligners every two weeks and your teeth move in smaller increments, you experience less discomfort. Traditional braces usually require an appointment every four to six weeks with larger movements. As a result, your mouth will feel sore much longer than with Invisalign and ClearCorrect.
Convenience
There’s no argument that Invisalign is more convenient than traditional braces. Since you can remove the aligners, there’s no difference between eating or brushing your teeth during treatment and not during treatment.
With traditional braces, on the other hand, you need to avoid certain food to prevent breaking your braces. Cleaning your teeth also requires extra time and commitment since you have to maneuver between wires and brackets.
Cost
The major difference between Invisalign and traditional braces is cost. Most patients think the cost difference is dramatic but clear aligners don’t cost much more than traditional braces. The extra cost usually outweighs the extra set of benefits that come with choosing clear aligners.
Results
The downside of clear aligners like Invisalign and ClearCorrect is that they don’t work for every patient. Patients who have severe orthodontic issues may require traditional braces to solve their problems. However, in the end, patients who are good candidates for both types of treatments can expect to achieve the same results. Invisalign and ClearCorrect tend to work a little faster as long as the patient wears their aligners for the recommended 22 hours per day. If they don’t, results can take longer to achieve.
Appearance
If you care about what your smile looks like during treatment, you might prefer ClearCorrect or Invisalign over traditional braces since the aligners used are clear and unnoticeable. However, we also offer clear traditional braces for less noticeable results. It really comes down to how much you care about the appearance of your teeth during treatment. Remember, braces are temporary!
There you have it. We’ll leave it up to you to decide if Invisalign is better than traditional braces. Some patients prefer Invisalign while others don’t want to deal with cleaning aligners multiple times per day and prefer fixed braces in their mouths. Every patient is different. Find out which orthodontic treatment is best for you when you schedule a consultation with our Invisalign dentist in Aberdeen at Kuhn Dental Associates. Please call (910) 692-4450 or contact us online to request an appointment.
