If you can follow directions, you can be successful with Invisalign. I mentioned on the other thread my 13 yr old DS is a perfect Invisalign patient. His older sister was horrendous (mostly by not wearing them). She was switched over to traditional braces. They both are good at brushing their teeth and never lost any Invisalign.

Check the other thread. May be just one poster w direct info that said her DS got a bunch of cavities. Others said their 13 yr old boys were model Invisalign wearers. If you start with Invisalign and it’s not working for whatever reason, ortho swithes you over to traditional braces at no extra cost.

Anonymous wrote:As an adult currently in the invisalign process, I think it would be a terrible choice for 99% of teenagers.

Teenagers eat a lot. They drink liquids a lot. They are going to have to remove them and clean their trays a whole lot - or more commonly, not wear their trays because it's too much work to remove, clean, brush, put them back in, every single time you want to have something that isn't clear water.

That, and losing/misplacing their trays is very common - and they're not exactly easy to replace.

I disagree. My DD has had them for 18 mos. She has never lost them. We had a close call once when we were at a restaurant at Yellowstone and DD set them in a napkin on her tray and there were workers who came around picking up the trays. We searched through the trash bin in the eating area and pulled them out. But, even if you lose a set, you just move on to the next set! Not hard to do at all!

I know DD is not brushing her teeth much. But, she has had sealants on her teeth -- so that is probably saving her. No cavities to date and we just saw the regular dentist this past month. I am not a huge fan of the invisilign for teens b/c I've had to say "why are your aligners sitting here?" many times. Her reg. dentist said "they should be in your face or in your case." But, DD didn't get that strong of a message from the orthodontist office, so she has been a slacker. The up side is that DD was more comfortable in them and never had to restrict foods. So, there are pros and cons. But, I would say that many teens can handle it and losing them is not a big deal.

Older kids all did standard braces. Youngest offered the invasilign option by the same orthodontist. DD jumped at this option. Only two months in but has been easy so far. DD is responsible by nature so not worried about forgetting to put them in/brush etc. But I was the holdout because I was unsure it would work as well as standard treatment. Was told by many that the important piece in orthodontic treatment is the retainer wear afterward.

As an adult currently in the invisalign process, I think it would be a terrible choice for 99% of teenagers.

Teenagers eat a lot. They drink liquids a lot. They are going to have to remove them and clean their trays a whole lot - or more commonly, not wear their trays because it's too much work to remove, clean, brush, put them back in, every single time you want to have something that isn't clear water.

That, and losing/misplacing their trays is very common - and they're not exactly easy to replace.

we got them for our SN child who we thought wouldn't be able to tolerate the regular braces.

Has been very unsuccessful. She takes them out, loses them or they get gross, she doesn't brush and food gets smashed between the teeth and invisalign. She also doesn't push them all the way up sometimes when she puts them on. We've had to redo them twice since she kept taking them out and her teeth didnt adjust as predicted.

That said, for a responsible person, I am sure they are great.

Anonymous wrote:My brother is a dds, and parent of teens. He was negative on Invisalign for young patients bc young patients tend not to wear them, lose them. Also, I think invisalign need to be removed when you eat, and that’s another chance for them to disappear.

The problem is that if you don’t wear them, your teeth aren’t corrected, and you can’t move on to the next stage as expected. Then it’s just a mess.

Anyway, I don’t remember all the details, bc it was clear that this was not the right choice for my DC. (DC really wanted Invisalign for cosmetic reasons.). And since I’m not a dds, I’m not really qualified to debate this/offer clarification. I’m sure other parents have had great experiences with Invisalign, so doubtless varied points of view on this board.

So Invisalign is a bad choice for people who don't wear them consistently and don't keep up with brushing?

What if your teenager is a responsible person who will wear them consistently and will keep up with brushing?

Anonymous wrote:My brother is a dds, and parent of teens. He was negative on Invisalign for young patients bc young patients tend not to wear them, lose them. Also, I think invisalign need to be removed when you eat, and that’s another chance for them to disappear.

The problem is that if you don’t wear them, your teeth aren’t corrected, and you can’t move on to the next stage as expected. Then it’s just a mess.

Anyway, I don’t remember all the details, bc it was clear that this was not the right choice for my DC. (DC really wanted Invisalign for cosmetic reasons.). And since I’m not a dds, I’m not really qualified to debate this/offer clarification. I’m sure other parents have had great experiences with Invisalign, so doubtless varied points of view on this board.

Your dentist brother's objection seems to be solely that kids will not wear them. So if they will wear them, he has no objection?

My teen is older (16) and has ADHD but somehow has been able to manage his invisalign very well, so there's that anecdote. I was worried he could lose them, too. But he hasn't. 6 months in so far and it's going fine!

Anonymous wrote:I don’t have experience but there was a thread on the health and medicine forum where some parents shared how their kids got several cavities in a 6 month period with Invisalign. It pretty much said if your kid isn’t brushing and flossing after every meal that it can make the teeth really cavity- prone.

I didn’t read that thread, but this happens to kids with regular braces also. They don’t brush well and floss because it’s tricky with the bands and wires.

I don’t have experience but there was a thread on the health and medicine forum where some parents shared how their kids got several cavities in a 6 month period with Invisalign. It pretty much said if your kid isn’t brushing and flossing after every meal that it can make the teeth really cavity- prone.

Anonymous wrote:We got them for my teen DS because he plays an instrument that would have been challenging with regular braces. I am always on him to wear them. He will take them out to eat and forget to put them back in. He has not lost them though. (And you get a new set for each week, so losing one set is not that big of a deal.) They are definitely more comfortable than regular braces.

New poster. Our ortho recommended them for my son. He will get them in about a year. He already had a removable retainer and he was able to keep track of that. It doesn’t seem too different.

We got them for my teen DS because he plays an instrument that would have been challenging with regular braces. I am always on him to wear them. He will take them out to eat and forget to put them back in. He has not lost them though. (And you get a new set for each week, so losing one set is not that big of a deal.) They are definitely more comfortable than regular braces.

My brother is a dds, and parent of teens. He was negative on Invisalign for young patients bc young patients tend not to wear them, lose them. Also, I think invisalign need to be removed when you eat, and that’s another chance for them to disappear.

The problem is that if you don’t wear them, your teeth aren’t corrected, and you can’t move on to the next stage as expected. Then it’s just a mess.

Anyway, I don’t remember all the details, bc it was clear that this was not the right choice for my DC. (DC really wanted Invisalign for cosmetic reasons.). And since I’m not a dds, I’m not really qualified to debate this/offer clarification. I’m sure other parents have had great experiences with Invisalign, so doubtless varied points of view on this board.

Invisalign gives you bad breath.

my son's orthodontist gave him the option of invisilign. has to do that or braces for about two years. any feedback on invisilign? price is not different.