Author: Lauren Kinghorn

When you are an adult who has misaligned teeth, it can feel tough in daily life; especially at staff meetings or when going out with friends. And if you grew up in the last 30 plus years, you may believe that the only way to realign your smile is by using a metal brace.

Confused about braces as an adult?

But, this is no longer true; there are now more options than ever before to get you the straighter smile you want and in this article, you will be introduced to some of the most popular ones.

A brief guide to your options

So, what are some of the different orthodontic options which an orthodontist in Stoke-on Trent is likely to offer you?

Clear braces

OK, so many people confuse a clear brace from an invisible aligner and it’s easy to see why.

But, a clear brace is typically fitted to your teeth, much in the same-way as a regular orthodontic brace but the brackets that have affixed it to your teeth are clear.

This makes it more visually discrete, as the wires which run across the front of these brackets are often thinner too. They are often worn for shorter periods of time too, with the shortest clear brace being the Six Month Smile, which corrects misalignments that have occurred with the front 6 teeth in around 6 months (hence the name).

Invisible aligners

Almost everyone has heard about invisible aligners; afterall, Invisalign is now an extremely common part of orthodontics that takes place in dental surgeries. Made from a thin, clear plastic, these aligners are custom-fitted to your teeth and come in a set of aligners that need to be worn in a precise order to be effective.

Related: Invisalign at Your Local Dental Clinic

They usually take an average of 6-9 months to realign most patients’ teeth and can also be used to straighten the teeth of teenagers. But, they have to be kept in for 22 hours per day to work, making it important for anyone using an invisible aligner to adhere to this.

Orthodontic braces

Everyone knows someone who has worn an orthodontic brace; they are made from metal and are placed across the front of the teeth. Commonly used for childhood orthodontics, these braces can also be used to correct misalignments that occur in adults and will require tightening every 6-8 weeks to work. With adult patients, it can take up to 24 months for the teeth to be straightened. But, as there are now other orthodontic options available, it is more than likely that your dental team will use this brace type in conjunction with another, such as a clear or invisible aligner, which will be more discrete and easier to use.

Lingual braces

Like traditional braces, Lingual options are fitted to the teeth but are placed at the back as opposed to the front. They require tightening on average every 6-8 weeks and can take around 24 months to work. Unlike traditional braces, the brackets are made from gold (very classy!) and this brace is renowned for being discrete.

Are there any advantages to dental implants?  Of course, there are!

When you have missing teeth, life can feel hard; you have to smile in group photos with your mouth closed and you are restricted to eating softer foods.  And, even if you have restoratives like dentures, there are often still issues with movement and sores forming on the gums. Yikes!

This brings the topic nicely to dental implants. Affixed to the jaw, these restoratives will never move and, following a short surgery to fit them, once they have fused with your jaw, they should last a lifetime.

So, no more blisters or sores, just great looking, functional teeth.

Advantages of Dental Implants

So, what are some of the other advantages of having dental implants fitted?  A dentist in St John’s Wood answers that question below.

1. Immovable

Dental implants cannot move once they have fused to your jaw, meaning you don’t need any glues or additional adhesives to hold them in place.

The fusing process can take up to 6 months, depending on your age and health, but once it is complete, those implants are there for at least 15 years!

2. Minor

The surgery surrounding oral implants is minimal and, depending on your dental team and clinical need, it may be performed in one sitting.

3. Painless

As you may know, many people have concerns about dental implants causing discomfort during the fitting. However, your dental team will ensure that your jaw is sufficiently numbed before the procedure starts, meaning that there will be no discomfort when you are getting your new gnashers fitted!

4. Life-long

Assuming that you care for them correctly, your dental implants should last the rest of your life. This means that you will have to treat them as you treat your natural teeth; they will need daily brushing, flossing and will need to be examined by your dental team bi-annually and you will also need to keep an eye out for things like gum disease or signs of infection.

If you suspect any of these, contact your dental team immediately.

5. Anti-allergy

Some patients have concerns that dental implants will be rejected by the body due to an immune response. But, this is not true; almost all oral implants are made from titanium, which is inert and will stay in place once fused. So, there is no need to worry about allergic reactions or your body rejecting your newly fitted dental implants.

6. Natural-looking

Many patients worry that the crowns of oral implants (the teeth) will look fake next to their natural teeth. However, crowns are designed to seamlessly blend in with any natural teeth that you may have if this is the goal.

If you want to have an entire set of teeth replaced with a glowing white Hollywood-esque set of teeth, then that can be achieved too! Just tell your dental team what you want.

7. Types

If you aren’t able to have endosteal implants fitted for whatever reason, there are different types of dental implants that can be used. Ask your dental team about suitability for subperiosteal, zygomatic or even mini implants.

Related: Replacing Teeth

Dental Implants – Are They Worth the Procedure?

When suffering from tooth loss, which can happen due to a number of reasons, the impact on both the physical and mental health of the patient can be great.

Dental implants, which are sturdy, natural-looking and are considered a long-term solution are therefore one of the leading tooth replacement procedures offered.

How does the process work?

Once the loss of a tooth has occurred it is important to contact your dental team as soon as possible so that no further damage to the area can occur.

A consultation will take place, where a series of physical examinations, photographs and in some cases X-rays will be taken to ensure that the jawbone has sufficient depth for the implant to be effectively put into place.

Once this has been established the procedure can often be carried out on the same day.

To begin with, a local anaesthetic will be applied to the area and a small incision within the gum will be made followed by the insertion of the implant screw or post. Whilst this may sound extremely daunting, this procedure is extremely common and with the local anaesthetic in place, only mild discomfort should occur after the procedure has been completed.

Once the screw is inserted into place the area will, in most cases, be left to heal. This enables the surrounding bone to regenerate around the screw ensuring an extremely secure base for the restored tooth.

In most cases, a temporary crown or bridge will be put in situ and after some healing time, a permanent solution will be put in place.

Is this treatment suitable for everyone?

Whilst dental implants Nottingham are often the preferred choice for tooth replacement due to their stability and long-term benefits, unfortunately, those with unhealthy gums or weak bones may not be able to have this particular treatment.

It is important to have these aspects of health in place so as to provide the stability needed for this procedure. This will always be discussed and decided within your consultation and if there is a way around the procedure your dental team will discuss this with you at the time.

Related: 5 Things to Look for When Choosing the Ideal Dental Team

Aftercare

Immediately following the surgical procedure the patient will be encouraged to rinse their mouth with an antibacterial mouthwash. This is then recommended on a daily basis for at least one week post-surgery so as to maintain the overall health of the area whilst healing.

Just two weeks later an appointment will take place where the area will be examined to ensure everything is healing efficiently.

For those with temporary crowns or bridges, depending on the amount of healing that has occurred, a discussion will take place as to when the permanent crowns can be attached.  This is dependent on the individual case so please do not worry if your dental team is not considering this yet.

Please note, all dental treatments and procedures, including those mentioned within this article, need thorough consultation. All patients are therefore advised to seek further information and advice from their local dental team before undergoing any treatments.

Replacing Teeth

Yes, it is entirely possible with modern restorative dentistry to replace teeth. These teeth don’t even have to be lost recently; you could replace a tooth that was lost 20 years ago.

It really is extraordinary to be at a point where a dentist can provide dental implants Harley Street.

Brief History of Dental Implants

This has not always been the case, however, one of the big factors which slowed down dental implants from becoming the norm was the sedation that was required to perform such surgery safely.

In the early days of dental implants (1910 to 1980), it was assumed that full sedation was necessary in order to perform dental implants; this kept them restricted to the operating theatres in hospitals and universities that taught dentistry.

At this point, it would be fairer to compare dental implanting to an experimental procedure that was only performed by the top dental researchers in a select few locations.

Another setback is the syllabus of your standard local dentists; implanting is not part of a dental degree. But with more dentists attending additional training after their standard dental degree in order to grasp the fundamentals to the implant technology, most dental surgeries will have at least one member of staff who is qualified to perform implants.

Making Dental Implants

The fabrication of dental implants in dental laboratories has also become commonplace and with the adoption of using digitised medical records, X-rays, and design specifications, biodata can easily be shared between the clinic and a dental laboratory.

The oral prosthetic which is fixed into the jaw by the implant follows many of the same design considerations as a crown, with enamel shade and translucency matching being a priority in order to result in seamless natural-looking results for the patient.

Treatment Time and Implantation Procedure

Over its development, the treatment time of implants has been progressively shortened, but it still takes 4 months in the best-case scenario for an implant to fully integrate into the jaw.

There is ongoing research into the use of possible drug therapies to increase the rate of bone growth to reduce this interval, allowing the loading of the implant where the prosthetic tooth is actually placed in the mouth to occur sooner.

Implants are very common with older patients who are more concerned about the success rate of their procedure rather than the length of the recovery time. The implant is securely held within the gum as it is integrating, minimising its disruption to the patient’s everyday activity.

The Future for Dental Implants

There is active work on the use of dental implants to immobilise dentures; the current industry standard is 5 equally placed implants, which has been shown to be effective in the vast majority of cases.

This has the advantage of reducing the cost to the patient whilst also simplifying the procedure. Whether dental implants become standard for an immobilised denture is yet to be seen, but is an exciting progression.

Another area of active research is the use of hormonal growth factors impregnated into the implant itself to encourage bone growth.

Related: How to Prevent Complications After Dental Implants

Invisalign at Your Local Dental Clinic

Invisalign status provider systems are not just based on some arbitrary sales target but on the successful implementation of their orthodontic products.

Their partnership system works with local clinics all around the world and they provide the manufacturing expertise and software engineering that allows Invisalign to produce aligners that clear and provide results.

We recommend that these aligners should be used with the oversight of a dentist Sydney CBD.

Related: What is Invisalign?

Too many online dental aligner companies have fallen into the trap of providing their aligners directly to patients based on poorly executed DIY home moulding kits.

This has led to some controversy around the dental aligner. As these aligners are fabricated but home moulding kits with the treatment schedule managed by little more than a calendar app, they often fall short of achieving the orthodontic potential that can be achieved in a regular clinic.

And it’s because of the consistent achievement of Invisalign products that many dental teams have been awarded with diamond provider status.

So, if you are looking for the best orthodontic results with this aligner, ask your local surgery if they can offer it and avoid online providers.

Why Do Dental Teams Like Invisalign?

The truth is that Invisalign products are excellent in quality, especially in relation to their manufacturing and the speed of their turnover.   Without them, dental professionals would not be able to offer clear aligners which have become more and more popular with adult orthodontic patients.

Their clear aligner system allows dental patients to receive orthodontic treatment in a subtle and practical way, each of the aligners is only designed to be worn for two weeks as part of a long serious because of this relatively short time period of use they can be very thin and light without any risk of them wearing out whereas standard orthodontic braces have to be fairly robust.

The aligner itself is also accompanied by a full range of other technologies, such as an app that you can use to track your progress in parallel with your dental team (thus freeing up appointments) and it also comes with predictive software.

Once the images of your teeth have been entered onto a computer, orthodontists can predict the movement pattern more accurately, providing you and your local team with a more accurate, predictive model.

This makes clear aligners very subtle and easier to wear in everyday life. Actually, if you live in the Sydney area you may have spoken to an Invisalign patient in the street and not even realised they were wearing an aligner.

Dental teams also appreciate that the clear aligner is not a silver bullet and they will always put the needs of their patients first.

Aligners are best suited to the front four teeth for mild-to-moderate misalignment; anything more severe would require a traditional brace and professionals are always clear with people when explaining their treatment needs and their expectations.

That said, you may be more suited to what is known as a combination treatment, by starting orthodontic care using traditional braces, quickly transferring over to clear aligners when the more challenging aspects of the orthodontic procedure are completed.

DISCLAIMER

Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.