How Is Invisalign Made?
Invisalign has transformed over 12 million smiles within 25 years with its clear aligners. These clear aligners are made from cutting-edge technology to create a clear and comfortable way to transform your smile without the look of traditional metal braces. The technology behind Invisalign aligners is always evolving, but how is Invisalign made?
3D Digital Scans
The process of creating your Invisalign aligners begins with impressions. Don’t worry, we aren’t talking about the goop impression! Align Technology created the iTero Scanner to take a 3D digital scan of your mouth that will help your trusted orthodontist map out a custom treatment plan for you. These scans are fast, precise, and comfortable!
After your scans are taken and your orthodontist creates your treatment plan the next step is to create the clear aligners! The scans, and the doctor’s treatment plan, are sent to Align Technology to begin the manufacturing stage. State-of-the-art printing technology is used to create your aligners.
How Is Invisalign Made?
Once Align Technology receives the treatment plan, they begin by splitting up the plan into “baby steps” to best support the desired movement split up into a series of aligners. These steps are printed by a 3D printer. The aligners are made of plastic that is then heated, pressure adapted, trimmed, and polished to make each aligner custom fit to you. Their SmartTrack Material was created to apply gentle and constant pressure to the teeth. This material improves the control of the movements and allows the aligners to fit snugly.
Attachments are tooth-colored “buttons” attached to the teeth to allow the aligners a better grip. If your doctor has prescribed attachments, those will be carved out in your aligners to allow your attachments to grip the aligners to encourage the movement that is needed. Often attachments aren’t needed on every tooth, only on teeth that need extra pressure. This is a step your orthodontist will determine when creating your treatment plan.
Following this step, the aligners are bagged in sequential order to provide easy directions during your treatment. After the aligners are created and packaged, they are then shipped to our office for you to begin your Invisalign journey!
Smile Transformation Begins
After the aligners are made, your attachments will be placed on your teeth. This process is easy! This process begins by marking the spots on your teeth so the attachments will fit into the aligners. Once the placement is correct, the attachments will be placed and cured on your teeth so they stay firmly in place. These attachments will be taken off at the end of treatment!
Now that your attachments have been placed, it’s time to start wearing your aligners! We will have you put in your aligners in our office to ensure they have a proper fit and you feel comfortable wearing them. Once we have all your questions answered it’s time to start the journey!
Wearing Your Invisalign
You will wear your aligners for 22 hours a day, taking them out to eat and drink each day. It’s important to remember to brush your teeth each morning and night as well as after each meal! Each week you will begin a new set of aligners that will apply different pressure to the teeth to move them into their final position. At the beginning of each new aligner, you may feel a little extra pressure or discomfort for the first few days, this is normal! It means your aligners are working properly.
Wearing your aligners 22 hours a day is important, and so is cleaning them! The aligners are in your mouth for most of the day so you want to make sure they stay clean! Rinse your aligners every night and brush them gently with your toothbrush to keep them fresh and clean.
Wisconsin’s #1 Invisalign Provider
Starting your smile journey is an exciting time! We hope that learning how Invisalign is made will make you more excited to start treatment. We are proud to be Wisconsin’s #1 Invisalign provider while providing a family atmosphere in our offices. We have 15 convenient locations in Southeastern Wisconsin making it easy to schedule your free consultation!