If you have crooked or unevenly spaced teeth, you may be embarrassed by your smile. At the same time, you may be hesitant to undergo treatment with the bulky metal brackets and wires used in traditional orthodontics. Fortunately, at Ballantyne Dentistry, we offer clear aligner therapy to patients in Charlotte, Gastonia, Mint Hill, and the surrounding areas. This modern approach uses a series of nearly invisible, removable aligner trays to gently and discreetly straighten teeth for a more attractive smile. Because treatment focuses on the teeth that show when you smile and uses advanced digital planning, many patients see meaningful results in a fraction of the time required for traditional braces—sometimes in as little as 6 to 12 months, depending on the case. To learn more about clear aligner therapy, including whether you are a good candidate, contact Ballantyne Dentistry today.
Clear aligner therapy operates on the same basic principles as traditional orthodontics: controlled, gentle pressure is applied to move teeth into better alignment over time. If you are determined to be a good candidate, your dentist will take digital scans or impressions and develop a customized treatment plan. A series of clear plastic aligners is then explicitly fabricated for your teeth.
You will wear each set of aligners for a prescribed period (typically one to two weeks), for 20–22 hours per day, removing them only to eat, drink anything other than water, brush, and floss. Because this type of treatment is focused primarily on aesthetic improvements, it often targets a smaller number of anterior teeth, and the aligners themselves are so discreet that many people may not even realize you are in treatment. As you progress through the series, the aligners gradually reposition your teeth. After treatment, you will need to wear a retainer to maintain your newly straightened smile. We offer both removable and permanently bonded retainers, which are carefully hidden on the inside of your dental arch.
Some patients assume that clear aligners must move teeth “faster” or more aggressively to work in a shorter time frame. In reality, the teeth move at a normal, safe biological rate. Clear aligner therapy can often deliver results more quickly because it uses sophisticated 3D imaging, precise treatment planning, and a focus on the cosmetic alignment of the teeth that show when you smile.
Because of this more targeted approach, clear aligners are usually best for patients who want to correct crowding, spacing, or mild bite discrepancies that primarily affect the appearance of their smile. Patients with more complex bite alignment problems or significant jaw discrepancies may still be better served with comprehensive orthodontic treatment.
Clear aligner therapy offers a number of important benefits, including:
Of course, the number one advantage of clear aligner therapy is that following treatment, you can enjoy a beautiful, more uniform smile and an enhanced sense of confidence.
Clear aligners deliver results efficiently by concentrating on the teeth that are most visible when you smile and by carefully staging each small movement in a digitally guided sequence. Treatment emphasizes the cosmetic appearance and straightness of the teeth, rather than attempting to correct every aspect of the bite in more complex cases. The teeth themselves do not move faster than they would with other orthodontic options; instead, the treatment plan is streamlined around the specific cosmetic changes you want to see.