invisalign for teens
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Anonymous
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Both my somewhat ditzy teenage son and my very responsible teenage daughter have done very well on Invisalign. Not a single cavity between them (son is already done and onto the nighttime retainers, Vivara). One reason our ortho recommended them is because it's much easier to brush thoroughly and floss (although honestly my kids don't). With braces, the odds that kids will floss is almost nil.
Both kids play wind instruments, and that was a factor. If you follow directions and brush the aligners with soap and water (not toothpaste) twice a day, they don't smell bad or cause bad breath. We have had a couple of lost sets but it has not been a big deal -- we call the office and they say yes, move to the next set. But I wouldn't go to a dentist for Invisalign -- only an orthodontist. Ours was very upfront about the pros and cons of braces (of different types) vs. Invisalign, and the price was the same, so I didn't feel any sales pressure and could trust the practice to give the best information possible to inform our decision. |
Anonymous
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I had invasalign as an adult and it was great. I wouldn't recommend it for very many teenagers as it requires a level of responsibility and planning that most aren't capable of. Personally, I wouldn't spend the extra money on something that perfectly socially acceptable (braces) at that age either.
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Anonymous
They literally have to brush at school after eating, or not wear them, which also isn't an option. If your kid's school schedule makes that possible, it could work. If they put the things back in without brushing, it creates perfect conditions and speeds up the decay process, which is different from the just the difficulty of brushing with regular braces. If they forget to brush one night, that is 10 hours of accelerated decay. And for my DC, summer camp was the beginning of the end. They were never near a place to brush after eating and never had a brush on them when they stopped to eat, so for two weeks, bacteria ate away at the enamel all day long. Had I known, we'd have taken two weeks off from wearing it even though that would have slowed down the process. My DC never lost them, but yeah, cavities for the first time ever. |
Anonymous
My young teen is doing great with them one year in. But is he wasn’t, orthodontist said she’d put on regular braces instead — no extra money. |
Anonymous
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4 kids who are in or have done Invisalign. No bad breath (other than the normal teen morning breath) and no cavities. None have brushed at school. Just a rinse with water after eating. After seeing some of their friends who "brush" with braces -- yeah, gross.
Two have completed right on time and are in retainers now. One has a few more months -- on time and one is about 1/2 through. We find them really easy. If they get lost, which is rare for my kids including my ADD oldest, they just move on to the next set. My kids are just normal teens not overly responsible and had no problems with them. |
Anonymous
| Also like 8:59 said our ortho charges the same for invisalign or braces. If there is a compliance issue or just not working putting braces on is always an option and no extra charge. |
Anonymous
| DS started at 14 and has surprised me at how good he has been about wearing them consistently and has never lost one. I don't think he brushes his teeth after lunch but he does rinse his mouth with water before putting them back in. Never had a cavity in the year he's been using it, although he's never had a cavity in his life so may just not be prone to them. From what other's have reported, I might be hesitant to use it with a kid who has previously been prone to cavities (although, as PPs have noted, it's hard to brush w/ regular braces too) |
Anonymous
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Our DD did invisalign. I think she was 11 when she started.
Our orthodontist does a LOT of invisalign for adults and kids. I think he is a platinum level provider or some such. Once the Invisalign recs allowed for keeping the trays in while eating, he started recommending them for kids. If you take them out to eat, there is a huge risk of losing them. If you eat with them in, the risk is pretty low. He was realistic that kids won't brush their teeth at school. Just rinsing them well and rinsing your mouth with water is good enough for most people. Soda is a big no-no with invisalign b/c of the sugar content. DD did use a prescription toothpaste for a while b/c of softening enamel. |
Anonymous
| Our ortho said it was unrealistic to expect kids to brush their teeth at school. She said she'd hope they could at least drink some water before the Invisalign goes back it. For my 13 yr old teen, he's either wearing the Invisalign or its in its case.(He keeps the second case at school to store the Invisalign during lunch) He hasn't lost any or had any issues. |
Anonymous
| My responsible DS wore Invisalign for @7 months to correct minor issues and it was excellent overall. He never lost them; never had bad breath; no cavities; never brushed teeth at school after lunch, etc. |
Anonymous
OP: Wait, you can leave them in while eating? That would be a game changer? The orthodontist we went to said you take them out when eating. |
Anonymous
I've got 2 kids in Invisalign and 1 kid who got traditional braces. Two kids have ADHD - one with Invisalign and one with traditional braces. The kid with traditional braces was not a candidate for Invisalign. Our experience with Invisalign is similar to the PPs. No bad morning breath, no cavities, no brushing at school (just rinsing with water) and no lost trays. My DD, in fact, was not a good candidate for traditional braces because she has very thin enamel. Given a choice, I would absolutely go with Invisalign. They're easy and much less of a hassle. I can't count the numbe rof times my kid with traditional braces has had his mouth bleeding because of broken wires or brackets. If you do go the Invisalign route, get a bunch of tray containers from eBay. My kids have at least one in every backpack, in their locker, etc. so they don't have to wrap their trays in a napkin. |
Anonymous
| our ds had regular braces for the first year to really move the teeth and then had the option of switching to invisalign for the second year. he did and loved it. he never lost any of them. I will admit he's not super compliant so he had to slow down his pace--ie if you wear them 18 hours a day you will go faster than if you wear them 12 hours a day. just have your kid be honest with ortho about how many hours they are actually wearing their invisalign every day. |
Anonymous
| My HS freshman just got Invisalign and so far, so good. He wears them 24/7 except when eating. He spent a year with a retainer before this so he was already in the habit of dealing with a dental appliance around food. The nice thing about the Invisalign is that you progress through a new set of trays each week, so even if he lost them it wouldn't be catastrophic. And especially for a HS aged kid, which is late for braces, they go almost entirely under the radar. I literally reminded him to put them back in the other day and he was wearing them at the time. |
Anonymous
I'm the PP. Our orthodontist (for DD and for me before that) says it is OK to eat with them in. Don't eat nuts or other things that might crack them, and nothing too hot (let your coffee/tea/hot chocolate cool off a bit). But really only take them out to clean. And if you wear them 22+ hours a day, you can move through them faster. I preferred to stick to the two weeks anyhow, as it was simpler to remember. We went to Dr. Shefferman. Close to the World Bank and White House. He was recommended by both my dentist and DD's pediatric dentist. |