Invisalign versus internet aligners: a comparison

There has been a rise in the number of patients seeking out orthodontic tools to straighten their teeth within the comfort of their own homes. While there is nothing inherently wrong with this provided that you have the oversight and guidance of a dental practitioner, in some instances, it can become far too easy for dental patients to simply order aligners from the internet without the necessary professional care.

Understandably, this comes with its own set of complications and can actually cause more issues with the realignment process than are needed.

At Clear Braces Direct, we offer in-surgery treatments for misaligned teeth and are also happy to offer at-home treatments using Invisalign London. However, we will always ensure that our team is on hand to guide you through this process as you undertake it in your own home and will always be willing and eager to answer any questions you may have.

In this article, we will compare the use of Invisalign London from our team to the use of a standard aligner bought online to help you see the dangers of undertaking orthodontic care without the oversight of a dental team.

Precision

First, when it comes to wearing Invisalign London, our team will need to take an intraoral scan of your mouth so that we can plot each stage of the realignment process. If you use an at-home kit, you will likely be sent a dental mould which you yourself are responsible for taking. This can create issues with the precision of the aligners that will be created, meaning that the result will simply not be as good as it would be if you had come to our team.

Care

As mentioned earlier, when it comes to using invisible aligners from our team, we will always ensure that we are on the end of the phone to answer any queries you have. You can also communicate with us via the app, which you will need to use to send us your weekly selfies. If you order an aligner from an online provider, you will simply not have access to this care, which can cause further issues with the realignment process.

Re-ordering aligners

In some cases, you may misplace or damage one of your aligners beyond repair and will need to have a replacement ordered. When you contact our team, we will always aim to get this done as soon as possible and usually with no further cost to you. If you do this via the internet and an online provider, you may be in for a bit of a wait, which can delay the process and even cause your teeth to revert.

Communication

To ensure that your alignment process is going as planned, our team will need to have weekly photos sent to us from your phone via the app. While some online providers do offer this, they likely do not have the expertise that our team has and will not be able to offer targeted advice to help you.

Complications

There may be issues with tracking, which our professional team will be able to assess by looking at your weekly selfies. Those who offer this service without checkups or intraoral scans are less likely to spot these issues and may actually be less qualified and capable of resolving potential complications that arise.