Living in a modern society has its own boon and bane, with an increase in the number of opportunities and options to improve the smile comes to a more furious and frustrating question “How to start clear aligner treatment?”

How to start clear aligner treatment?

A daunting task not just for a patient sometimes for a clinician as well. It is not so complicated to get yourself started with K aligner. Here are a few top few things needed to be considered to start:

Pre-treatment

1. Name, age, gender
2. Intra oral images
3. Extra oral images
4. Radiographs
5. Chief complaint
6. Treatment goals
7. Impressions (PVS with the light body)
8. Periodontal health
9. Travel status

When the box of aligners is delivered

1. Check the fit of the starter
2. Polish the tooth surface
3. Place attachments
4. Deliver aligner

Read More: What are clear aligners or invisible braces?

Read More: Aligners vs Braces

How to Start Clear Aligner Treatment in India

For A Patient:

As there are ‘n’ numbers of reasons to start orthodontic treatment yet, many patients lack the zeal as they don’t want braces in their mouth and feel socially awkward. However, aligners provide this opportunity to the patient to opt for this orthodontic appliance, which helps achieve all the desired outcome without bringing about any inconvenience in their nonchalant lifestyle. To start with a k aligner simply visit nearby registered/certified doctor, provide with necessary records and give a few days for your aligners for a hustle free orthodontic treatment.

For A Doctor:

It is one of the advanced and rewarding treatment modality.

To start a case with K aligners following are mandatory.

Name

It is important to maintain records as well as to get acquainted with the patient and comfort the patient as the treatment is for a longer duration.

Age

To understand the tooth eruption/ shedding schedule along with age-related issues if any.

Gender

Each gender exhibit peculiar feature (such as if female with more prominent forehead or pointy slant/ flat tapered noseetc. is signs of beauty in different cultures), helpful to plan treatment.

Records (Intra-oral and Extra-oral images)

Both intra and extraoral images play an essential role while planning treatment, as the patient cannot be around all the time at the clinic. These images provide a useful tool to access and understand the malocclusion.

Radiographs

Radiograph such as

1. OPG – helps to understand the root positioning of each tooth in growing children it is crucial to access the position of already present milk teeth and the position of the erupting permanent teeth. Also, one of the primary cause of relapse after orthodontic treatment in the presence of 3rd molars. OPG helps to understand their position and plan for extraction.
2. Lateral cephalogram – it is the X-ray of the side-face, utilized to understand both the jaws and teeth in relation to each other, also parameters evaluated on this radiograph help plan extractions.
3. IOPAR – for any particular tooth to understand any particular anomaly

Chief complaint

It is the desired objective of the patient for the treatment, no less or more( for example a patient is only looking for rotation correction of the upper 2 front teeth and no more worried about the crossbite or rotation of posteriors).

Treatment goals

It is an elaborated step-wise plan the clinician is looking for till the end of treatment.

Impressions (PVS with the light body)

An impression is a replica of the original denture without a soft tissue. Various dental materials are available to record good impression, but to start a case with aligner PVS(Polyvinyl siloxane) with the light body is needed, the aligner is an accurate and precise appliance thus sharp and properly recorded margins, and tooth anatomy is a crucial part for the fabrication. Any defect or deficiency related to aligner under most often instances is due to improperly recorded impression. Points to remember while recording an impression:

1. Sharp margins
2. Tooth anatomy recorded
3. Should not be sort (deficit)
4. Void-free
5. The tray should not be exposed at an end
6. Properly recorded vestibule

Periodontal health (gums health)

Gums play an important role in k – aligner treatment, the aligner margin exceeds a little over the gums to help adapt the appliance. Poor gum health (swollen, bleeding or receding gums) causes a little increase in the duration of the treatment as the forces in-corporated to move tooth to the required position is reduced with an increase in the number of aligners.

Travel status

One of the most important reasons why many patients are choosing K-Aligners over other modes of orthodontic treatment. It reduces the number of visits to the clinician; thus a lot of travelling or foreign patients are opting for K -Aligners.

These are one of the important records to be taken before we start a case with K -Aligners.

Once, the records are shared the query again pops “how to start k – aligner treatment?”

Well, based on the impression received- a starter is shipped to check the fit.

Once the fit of the starter is confirmed the treatment plan video (pre-treatment to post-treatment result) is shared.

After the approval of the treatment plan fabrication starts and a box of aligners is shipped to the clinical.

Contents of the box:

1. Template
2. IPR chart (If, Needed)
3. Aligners in a sequential order

A template is used to place attachments. Attachments are composite (tooth coloured) small points placed on the tooth for anchorage as well any desired tooth movement.

IPR chart

It is the interproximal reduction. Précised protocol is shared for each proximal-side of each tooth to be performed with the help of IPR strips/burs. It is done to create space for friction-free tooth movement. May vary from (0.1mm – 0.6mm)

In conclusion, you only need to get a few records and zeal to start a K-aligner case.

-by Dr Swapnil Gupta (CEO, Director ODS)