If you’re interested in clear aligners like Invisalign, you might be wondering how long treatment takes. The answer to this question can be complicated; Invisalign offers a lot more predictability than other forms of orthodontic treatment, but there are also some factors that are outside of our control. Here’s what you need to know about how long it takes for Invisalign to straighten teeth.
Average Invisalign Treatment Time
Invisalign clear aligners take an average of 12 to 18 months to straighten teeth according to the Invisalign website. As a dental practice that provides clear aligners and Invisalign in Coral Springs, we’ve seen patients who have required a full 18 months of treatment and also patients who were able to achieve their results in less than a year. Because the range given by Invisalign is an average, you can expect that some patients will need to wear their aligners for a longer period of time while others may finish treatment sooner.
Factors That Impact Treatment Time for Clear Aligners
Unlike traditional braces, clear aligners allow us to plan each movement of every single tooth throughout your treatment. This means we can project how long you will need to wear your aligners, but there is one factor that we can plan for and one that we can’t.
Your Orthodontic Needs
If you’ve never had braces in the past and have significant bite and alignment issues, you’ll need to wear clear aligners like Invisalign for a longer amount of time than a patient who only has minor spacing issues or needs Invisalign to correct orthodontic relapse (teeth that have shifted back after braces). The amount of orthodontic correction you need is the most significant factor in predicting how long you will need to wear Invisalign.
This is incorporated into your treatment plan, so no matter what your orthodontic needs are, we’ll be able to come up with a tentative timeline for your treatment.
Your Compliance With the Program
While we can take your orthodontic needs into consideration when planning your treatment, one thing we can’t plan for is your compliance with the Invisalign program. Our plan is made assuming you will wear your aligners for the recommended 20 to 22 hours a day. If you don’t follow through with this and take out your aligners often and leave them out for long periods of time, it will impact the length of your treatment.
We recommend that you only remove your clear aligners when you need to eat, drink something other than water, brush your teeth, or floss. This is the best way to keep your treatment on track. If you’re not wearing your aligners as much as you need to, it can set your treatment back weeks or even months. When you come in for your follow-up appointments with us, we may ask you to keep your current set of aligners in longer than the usual two weeks and in some cases, we may even want you to move back to a previous set of aligners.
Learn More About Invisalign
The best way to know how long it will take Invisalign to straighten your teeth is to schedule an appointment for a consultation. Contact us today at 954-796-3355 to get started.