Your North Vancouver Invisalign® Provider
Are you looking into Invisalign clear aligners to treat an orthodontic issue? One question our patients often have is about how their clear aligners are made. Our North Vancouver dentists break down the process.
If you're thinking about using Invisalign clear aligners instead of braces for your orthodontic treatment, you might be curious about how they're made. After all, you'll have them in your mouth for a long time!
Medical-Grade Resins
Invisalign clear aligners, like braces, are designed to gradually shift misaligned or misplaced teeth into their proper positions. Clear aligners, however, are made of clear, transparent plastic rather than the metal and brackets found in traditional braces. They're made of BPA-free, USP Class VI medical-grade polyurethane resins with a high molecular weight.
Custom Fit & Production
Every patient’s orthodontic issues, physical characteristics and goals are unique, so their orthodontic treatment needs to fit their specific needs.
Invisalign aligners are custom-made to snugly fit the shape of your mouth and are specifically designed to help you achieve your smile goals.
During the consultation, you'll meet with your dentist in person so that X-rays, impressions, and photographs of your teeth can be taken. Your dentist can create a personalized treatment plan for you based on these images and X-rays and discuss it with you. Your clear aligners will be made after you approve the expected results.
Our iTero Impression Scanner (3D computer imaging technology) will create a model of your teeth, capturing images of each tooth for extremely accurate scans. You'll also get a sneak peek at how your teeth will look once your treatment is completed.
Both a quadrant scan and a full bite scan are completed so the dentist can assess your malocclusion in context with the rest of your mouth.
The complete model and scanned images are then sent to Align Technologies, where the aligners are created.
How many aligners will you need?
You’ll use several sets of aligners throughout your treatment as your teeth move in tiny increments with each new set of aligners.
Invisalign treatment lasts about a year on average, and you'll probably wear each new set of aligners for two weeks before switching to the next. This means you'll most likely use 50 or more sets of aligners throughout your treatment.