Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi, i just got my first Invisalign trays on Wednesday and found this board on Friday, lol. It seems that i was so excited about getting Invisalign that i maybe didn't research it enough. Not that i have regrets but there seems to be quite a bit of information here that i wasn't aware of.

I'm getting my treatment through my dentist, who is being supervised by an Invisalign Elite Premier provider orthdontist.. The dentist office will be doing all the 'hands on' work, but the ortho will be supervising the treatment plan. I am the first patient. I had bite impressions, photos, xrays and then a ceph xray taken to determine if i was a candidate. The answer came back that i was accepted and at my next appointment had the mold impressions taken. It took 2 1/2 hours to take suitable upper and lower impressions, but after they were sent to the ortho to review, they determined that they had to be redone. So i went back the next week and they did them over again. This was at the beginning of Sept. A couple of weeks ago i got a call that my trays were ready.

My appointment was Wed. They said i needed to get some 'attachments' (which i had never heard of). It turns out i have 9 attachements, 4 upper and 5 lower. This is also when i saw my Clincheck. They kind of showed it to me as an afterthought while i was in the chair. I got my first and second set of trays, told to wear my first set for 3 weeks, then change and to come back in 4 weeks. I also got a 'chewie' which i've been told i have to use 15 minutes a day...does anyone else have this? It's like a piece of rubber you gnaw on where your attachments are. Anyway, i have a few questions....

--do people normally get a chance to view their own Clincheck to approve their treatment plan? Who makes the treatment plan--like who decides how they want my teeth to look at the end of treatment? Invisalign? The ortho? I'm confused. For instance, when i saw my Clincheck end result i thought--who decided that?

--what are refinements? I know something about having to have retainers, but are there different types?

--is there ANYTHING i can use for my shredded cheeks and tongue?? I want to get some wax (where can you get some?") and i have Anbesol but i am utterly miserable. It looks like they cut the the tray near where the attachments are (to make it easier to get the trays out?) and i am just rubbeed raw. I can't even eat because when the trays are out, the attachements are even more rought on my cheeks.

Thanks to all for any answers.

Hi,

As far as i know, most people get to see and approve their clincheck.

The Invisalign techs create the treatment plan based on what your dentist tells then, and hopefully that's based on what you've told your dentist. If you told your dentist you want straight teeth, then he will have (presumably) instructed the invisalign tech to create a plan to suit that end. Your dentist may send the clincheck back for modification until he/you are happy.

Refinements and mid-course corrections are when you get new impressions taken because you're not happy with the end result, or your aligners stop fitting at some point during treatment and you need a new set.

Some people have problems with the edges of the aligners scratching. Try use a nail file to smooth (not file down!) the edges of the aligners and perhaps dental wax if it's very bad. Maybe someone else has a better suggestion, i've never been afflicted with that problem.

My dentist didn't tell me about ClinCheck - I found out about it on blogs well after I began wearing the braces. I asked to see it and it took 3 appointments (so, 3 months) to finally get to see it. I was VERY disappointed to see the end result - gaps between the front teeth, both upper & lower. That is not my goal since I have had crooked, overcrowded teeth all my life. I was so stunned I didn't say a word, but actually cried while driving home. I hope the refinement process will take care of the gaps. They aren't huge, but still, I never dreamed I'd have ANY at all. Dentist is so busy I haven't had a moment to address this situation, but I will.

Dental wax is the only thing that brings me relief for my cut up mouth. Filing never helped to soften the edges of my aligners. You can get the wax from your orthodontist but I think maybe I have seen it in Wal Mart and the like. The wax is kind of gross and annoying as well, but it is soft and so much better inside the mouth. When you take out the aligners to eat, you have to put the wax back on and it can take some maneuvering to get it back in the right spot. I always have a cut up mouth or bumps on my tongue. I hope this helps you.

Thanks for the suggestions. As an emergency measure i got extra-strength Anbesol so that helped numb the pain. I managed to get some wax yesterday and that was sweet relief! The pain is nowhere near what it was, but i'm still pretty scratched up. I did manage to file one edge of the aligner to save my tongue but the other parts i couldn't get down. Taking them out to eat is awful cause the attachments are so rough they shred my mouth just as badly. I have no bite either so i am constantly biting my cheeks and tongue. What a mess.

t13nif wrote: --do people normally get a chance to view their own Clincheck to approve their treatment plan? Who makes the treatment plan--like who decides how they want my teeth to look at the end of treatment? Invisalign? The ortho? I'm confused. For instance, when i saw my Clincheck end result i thought--who decided that?

Sometimes the ortho/dentist doesn't bother telling the patient about clincheck. Sometimes you have to ask to see it. Sometimes they ask if you want to see it and approve it first.

I believe Invisalign makes an initial clincheck based on the pictures and impressions they got, and maybe from initial notes that the dentist/ortho gives them. Then the dentist/ortho can request changes if he doesn't like what they have.

The first time I went in to see my clincheck, the initial alignment of my upper and lower teeth was off. If that plan was approved, my lower incisors would have moved forward in front of the top teeth! So it's a good thing I noticed that and pointed it out. I was a little surprised that there was even the possibility to make that mistake. I don't know why they don't make every patient check their clincheck first just to avoid mistakes like this. It seems to be in the dentist/ortho's best interest to get it right in the beginning and avoid a big problem later.

t13nif wrote:--what are refinements? I know something about having to have retainers, but are there different types?

If your teeth aren't moving as planned or you get to the last set of aligners and your teeth are still not good they will take more impressions, get another clincheck and make a new set of aligners. It's the same process as starting from the beginning but hopefully you are much closer to having perfect teeth, so there are less refinement trays. Also, some providers will charge for more refinements and some include any possible refinements in the price that you paid up front.