Lets Talk About Invisalign – What you need to know

An Invisalign aligner

Invisalign^®clear braces, the world’s most advanced clear aligner system, offer a much easier and less noticeable way of adjusting your smile. The Invisalign system utilises a bespoke series of clear, removable and near-invisible but equally effective aligners, which can correct and reposition your teeth without any disruption to your daily life.

Most patients who wear Invisalign, often find that their braces are not noticed by other people.

Invisalign is a very convenient way to straighten your teeth with ease; you can take your aligners out to eat, brush your teeth like normal or play any high-contact sport, so you don’t need to put any aspect of your life on pause to straighten your teeth. Unlike traditional braces, there are no metal wires, which can sometimes irritate a patient’s mouth.

Invisalign braces take about the same time as regular braces to work, depending on a patient’s specific circumstances. Multiple visits are required to the dentist or our orthodontist, as you’ll need a number of different Invisalign aligners as the treatment progresses. This process can take anywhere from 6 months to a year+ depending on a patient’s needs and type of Invisalign aligners they require.

iTero scanner

Before starting Invisalign treatment, your dentist or orthodontist, will take a 3D digital scan of your mouth, using our iTero scanner. Your dentist then receives a ClinCheck, which is a short 3D animation that allows you to see your predicted Invisalign treatment result before you even begin the Invisalign process.

When you begin Invisalign treatment and your first set of aligners are fitted, your mouth will take a little time to get used to the new sensation, but this only lasts a few days and after this you’ll hardly notice them. Some patients will notice a slight change to their speech in the first days of wearing an aligner, such as altered pronunciation of certain sounds. However, this is nothing to worry about, as our mouth and tongue adjust extremely quickly to the new shape and contour and so after a few days this will resolve, and you’ll hardly notice you’re wearing them.

At Portobello Dental Clinic we provide both Invisalign Go and Invisalign comprehensive braces.

Invisalign Starter Pack

Invisalign Go involves a short (less than 20 weeks) series of clear aligners that are individually manufactured and changed at regular intervals to aid the gradual movement of a patient’s teeth. Invisalign Go is suitable for most adult patients with mild to moderate crowding, but not for larger movements.

For more complex orthodontic treatments that require larger movements, Invisalign comprehensive with our Orthodontist, Dr Paula Taracido, may be the more suited option. Depending on each patient’s case and requirements, Invisalign Comprehensive can be used to treat an array of conditions, including overcrowding, underbite, overbite, crossbite and overjet (protruding teeth).

Rest assured we also provide conventional tooth coloured braces, if Invisalign is not the recommended treatment path for your dental needs.

The first step is to book for a comprehensive dental assessment. This includes a full dental examination, any related x-rays and/or photos required, oral cancer screening, gum examination, consultation and treatment plan.

At Portobello Dental Clinic, Dr Helen Walsh and Dr Daniel Browne, provide Invisalign Go treatment. So please do mention on booking you are interested in Invisalign, and we will ensure you are booked in to see the correct dentist.

We can provide in-house referrals to Dr Paula Taracido for more complex and comprehensive orthodontic treatments.

If you would like more information about Invisalign before making the first appointment, you can email to ask for a call back from our Lead Treatment Coordinator, Anne-Marie, who will talk to you in more detail about what an Invisalign patient journey involves.