Hit The Right Note With Invisalign

Playing in a marching band is hard work.

You have to know how to march, when to march in what direction, and how to stay in sync with the rest of the band. On top of that, you need to play an instrument. It is a band after all.

Don’t make the work harder than it needs to be.

Many high school students enjoy their time in the band. Many students do not enjoy wearing braces.

If you made a Venn diagram with brass players in one circle and braces wearers in the other, the overlapping group might not be a happy bunch.

Braces can complicate lots of things without interfering with how you play your instrument. There may be another way — a more comfortable way — to complete your orthodontic treatment at First Dental Associates.

If you live in or near Reading, MA, make plans to visit our dentist office to ask about Invisalign®.

Braces Vs. Brass

Baritones. Trumpets. Mellophones. Sousaphones. Tubas.

These are some of the brass instruments used by marching bands. If you play one, then you are familiar with the technique needed to create music.

It’s different than playing a woodwind instrument. With brass, you press your mouth against the mouthpiece as you play.

Now, imagine having brackets attached to the front of your teeth and a metal wire running between those brackets. Now try to imagine what it would be like to play a brass instrument with those brackets and wire pressing on the inside of your lips.

It’s not a pleasant experience. Yes, some people have learned to play through the pain, but it may not be necessary.

With Invisalign, you could wear plastic aligners — smooth plastic aligners. Then you wouldn’t have anything that could scratch in the inside of your mouth.

What Can Invisalign Do

We understand that there are bigger concerns than whether your orthodontic treatment will interfere with your trumpet playing. First and foremost, the goal of your treatment should be to make your teeth straighter.

And Invisalign can do that for many patients.

Crooked teeth can be made straighter. Crowded teeth can become more evenly spaced, and gaps between teeth can be closed.

Invisalign also can help with bite issues such as overbites, underbites, crossbites, and open bites.

While severe alignment issues may require braces, Invisalign can work for most patients seeking straighter teeth.

How Invisalign Works

We have mentioned the aligners above, and you may be wondering how they work.

When you come to our office, we will make an impression of your teeth. That impression will be sent to the Invisalign lab.

Using a computer program, Invisalign will create a series of aligners just for your teeth. These are similar to the mouthguards worn by athletes.

The aligners are meant to be worn in sequence, and each aligner will push your teeth a little closer to their desired position.

When your teeth are where you want them to be, you will wear a retainer for a short time. This is an important step because it reduces the risk of relapse, which is when your teeth drift back toward their original positions.

The Advantages Of Using Invisalign

Invisalign offers some significant advantages over braces for patients in their day-to-day lives (not just when playing tubas and sousaphones).

The first advantage is that the aligners are made of clear plastic. When you are wearing them, they are practically invisible. Few if any people will even notice that you have them on … unless you take them off in front of them.

That leads us to another advantage. You can remove your aligners. (Do NOT try this with braces.)

To get the maximum benefit from Invisalign, you should wear the aligners at least 22 hours per day. That leaves you plenty of time to remove your aligners during meals and when you brush and floss your teeth.

This means you don’t have to give up any of the foods that you like to eat. With braces, you may have to worry about food getting stuck in your braces. Certain foods can cause brackets to come free or wires to break.

You won’t have either of those concerns with Invisalign.

And it’s also worth noting that the average Invisalign patient can complete his or her treatment in about 12 months. That’s about half the time most people wear braces.

Want To Learn More About Invisalign?

We welcome you to start by calling [phone] or using our online form to schedule an appointment at our dentist office in Reading, MA.

First Dental Associates wants to help you straighten your teeth. Talk to use to find out if Invisalign could be the clear, comfortable, and convenient treatment for you.