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Straightening Teeth Without Brackets and Wires
Many adults want straighter teeth but hesitate because they do not want the appearance or inconvenience of traditional metal braces. Invisalign® offers a discreet alternative, using a series of clear, custom-made aligners that gradually move your teeth into position based on a personalized digital treatment plan.
Because the aligners are removable, you can eat the foods you enjoy and brush and floss as usual throughout treatment. Their nearly invisible design fits comfortably into everyday life, making Invisalign® a convenient option for correcting crowding, gaps, and other alignment concerns without the look of metal braces.
At Whispering Ridge Family Dentistry, Dr. Emily Albertsen is a certified Invisalign provider and treats patients wanting to correct crowding, gaps and alignment at our West Omaha office.
Schedule an Invisalign Consultation
What Is Invisalign
Invisalign is a clear aligner system that moves teeth using a sequence of custom made trays rather than brackets bonded to the teeth and wires connecting them.
Treatment begins with a digital scan of your teeth, which becomes a three dimensional model used to plan the entire course of movement from start to finish. That plan determines how many aligners you will need, which teeth move when, and what the final position looks like. Each aligner in the series is manufactured from a clear medical grade thermoplastic, shaped to hold your teeth in a position marginally ahead of where they currently sit. Wearing it applies gentle, sustained pressure, and the teeth follow.
The other thing to understand upfront is that aligners only work while they are in your mouth. 20 to 22 hours daily is the requirement, which means they are out for meals and cleaning and in the rest of the time. Treatment that runs long almost always traces back to wear time rather than anything clinical.
What Invisalign Can Correct
Aligners handle a substantial range of orthodontic issues:
Crowded teeth
where there is not enough room in the arch and teeth overlap or twist
Gaps and spacing
whether from naturally spaced teeth or a missing tooth
Overbite
where the upper front teeth extend too far over the lower
Underbite
where the lower teeth sit ahead of the upper
Crossbite
where some upper teeth close inside the lower teeth
Open bite
where front teeth do not meet when the back teeth close
There are limits, and being clear about them saves disappointment. Severe skeletal discrepancies, where the problem is the relationship between the jaws rather than the position of teeth within them, need orthodontic treatment beyond aligners and sometimes surgical input. Very severe rotations and teeth needing substantial vertical movement are harder for aligners to achieve than for fixed braces. Cases requiring extraction of permanent teeth for space are more complex and not always suited to aligner treatment.
Dr. Albertsen will assess your case and tell you honestly whether Invisalign will achieve what you want, or whether a referral to an orthodontist would serve you better. Being told the honest answer at a consultation is considerably better than discovering the limitation partway through treatment.
Your Invisalign Treatment From Scan to Retainer
Consultation and assessment
Dr. Albertsen examines your teeth, gums and bite, reviews imaging and discusses what you want changed. This appointment establishes whether Invisalign is suitable for your case and covers the likely timeline and cost, including insurance coverage.
Digital scan and treatment planning
A digital scan captures your teeth in three dimensions, replacing the impressions older systems required. From that scan, the full sequence of movement is planned, which determines how many aligners you need and how long treatment runs. You will be shown the projected outcome before committing, so the finishing position is not a surprise.
Aligner fabrication
Your custom aligners are manufactured to the plan, typically arriving within a few weeks.
First fitting and attachments
Your first aligners are fitted and checked. Where the plan calls for attachments, those small tooth coloured bumps are bonded to the relevant teeth at this appointment, and interproximal reduction is done where space is needed. You are shown how to insert and remove the trays, and given your wear schedule.
Progressing through the series
You move to a new aligner every one to two weeks as directed. Each set feels snug for the first day or two, which is the sensation of the teeth being under pressure, then settles. Consistency across the series is what produces the result.
Progress appointments
Check ins every six to ten weeks let Dr. Albertsen confirm the teeth are tracking as planned, hand over your next sets of aligners and address anything that has come up. If a tooth is not following the plan, catching it here allows a correction rather than a problem compounding.
Refinements if needed
Many cases finish with a short series of refinement aligners, made from a fresh scan, to fine tune the final positions. This is a normal part of treatment rather than a sign something went wrong.
Attachment removal and retainers
Attachments are removed and polished away, and your retainers are fitted. This is where treatment stops being active and becomes maintenance, and the retainer stage is not optional.
Most adult cases run somewhere between six and eighteen months, with simple spacing corrections at the shorter end and more involved crowding or bite correction at the longer. Dr. Albertsen will give you an estimate specific to your case at the consultation rather than a generic range.
Who Is a Good Candidate for Invisalign?
Aligners suit most adults and many teenagers, and the assessment covers a few things.
- Your teeth and gums need to be healthy first
Active decay is treated before aligner treatment begins, since a tray sitting over a cavity is not helpful, and moving teeth with untreated gum disease accelerates bone loss. Periodontal treatment comes first where it is needed. Existing crowns, bridges and implants are not necessarily a barrier, though they affect planning, since an implant cannot be moved and the plan has to work around it. - Your case needs to be within range
Mild to moderate crowding, spacing and bite issues are well suited. More severe cases are assessed individually. - You need to be able to wear them consistently
This is the honest deciding factor for many patients. 20 to 22 hours daily is required, which means removing them only for meals and cleaning. Patients who graze throughout the day, or who take them out for social situations, extend their own treatment and sometimes stall it entirely. There is no hidden mechanism that compensates for inconsistent wear. - Teenagers
Can be excellent candidates, and Invisalign offers a version designed for adolescent patients with features accounting for teeth still erupting. Whether it suits a particular teenager depends largely on how reliably they will wear it, and that is a conversation worth having frankly with them rather than about them.
See Whether Invisalign Suits Your Teeth
An Invisalign consultation gives you concrete answers rather than general information: whether aligners will achieve what you want, roughly how many months it would take, what it costs and what your insurance covers. Dr. Albertsen will also tell you honestly if your case would be better served by an orthodontist.
Request an appointment online or call our West Omaha office at 402-991-6965, and our team will find a time that fits your schedule.
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