Metal-free braces
By Dr. Linda Niessen -- Baylor College of Dentistry
Patients wear the nearly invisible plastic trays, called aligners, 24 hours a day. They only take them out to eat and brush their teeth. Now, for the first time, teenagers are being treated using Invisalign. But only a certain type of young patient. Here's the biggest problem: compliance. The Invisalign system requires the patient to follow the dentist’s directions and wear the aligners all the time. “You can’t be very forgetful,” Nicole Bullock said. She is a very mature 13-year-old. Her dentist prescribed Invisalign to straighten her top and bottom teeth. “You have to be pretty responsible, because you can’t leave them someplace, otherwise your teeth won’t move.” “If they don’t wear the Invisalign aligner, it doesn’t work. So it’s an absolute requirement that they be a compliant patient,” said Dr. Doug Crosby, Nicole’s orthodontist. So far, he has about a dozen young Invisalign patients. “When they come in, they are supposed to be at a certain tray or aligner. And if that particular aligner is not fitting, then we know they haven’t been wearing it,” Crosby said. “Certainly, my daughter, being responsible makes her just a perfect Invisalign candidate,” said Nicole’s mother, Monica Bullock. Invisalign is still for only minor movement of teeth. Eventually, the technique could be used for more complex orthodontic problems.
Monday, December 09, 2002
Metal-free braces offered to mature young patients
12/09/2002
![[Image]](../Images/invisalignfinal_2.jpg)
Thousands of adults have avoided conventional braces by using the new Invisalign system.
Dr. Linda Niessen, clinical professor in the Department of Restorative Sciences and the Office of Communications and Development at Baylor College of Dentistry, hosts Dental Health Check, the only weekly dental feature shot on location in the nation.
