I was using smile direct club to get my Invisalign, but they’ve gone out of business. I don’t have all my aligners and have been wearing the same pair since December when they closed down. I’ve been trying to either get the rest of my aligners or at least part of my money back, but I’ve had no luck with either. I can’t keep wearing these forever, plus, my teeth still aren’t straight. Do you know of another company like this one that will let me continue where I left off?

Cara

Dear Cara,

I want to qualify a couple of things for the benefit of others who may be reading this. Smile Direct Club was not a part of Invisalign. Instead, they used their own type of invisible aligners to distribute through their company. This was a mail-order company that allowed patients to get a type of Invisalign product without going through a dentist or an orthodontist. They said this would save them lots of money.

As to your question, are you sure you really want a company like Smile Direct? They haven’t really done a good job for you. One of the reasons they went out of business was because many of their patients had horrible problems with the treatment.

Not many people knew about this because they used to suppress bad reviews by only allowing patients to get a refund if they signed a non-disclosure agreement about the problems they faced with their treatment. It wasn’t until June of last year that a court case said they were no longer allowed to do that. This released even previous customers from their agreements and all the bad reviews started rolling out. By September, they were bankrupt. When they could not find a buyer for their company, they closed their doors.

The problem with using an online company to do your orthodontics is they are going to have the same weaknesses as Smile Direct did. You won’t be under the care of an orthodontist who knows what they are doing. Plus, our bodies rarely follow the prescribed treatment without needing some adjustments. When you are not under the care of a orthodontist or a dentist there is no one to help you with those adjustments. People have actually lost their teeth when trying to do orthodontics on their own.

Your safest option is to do the real deal such as Invisalign or Spark Aligners. I am so sorry this happened to you.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Tostado.

I know that Smile Direct Club went out of business. Do you know of another option like that? I don’t want to have to go to a dentist every two weeks.

Joe

Hi Joe,

I am glad you wrote before just following through with this idea. One of the things that is awesome about a free market is that you can find just about any type of service if you look hard enough. However, this comes with comes with some dangers. Just because something is available, does not mean that you should use it.

SmileDirect would have gone out of business much sooner had they not been suppressing negative reviews. Once the court said that SmileDirect couldn’t hold people’s money hostage unless they agreed to not say anything negative about them, all the truth about the problems with their treatments and procedures came flooding out. They went out of business shortly after that. Yes, there are other companies that will step into the consumer market when SmileDirect went out of business, but they are going to have the same problems in regard to their treatment.

First, without an accurate impression your treatment plan is going to be off. That could be slightly off or it could be disastrously off. Second, you don’t have an adequate examination before your treatment. Most of these companies either go by a photograph, which cannot tell you what you need to know about things like gum disease, etc., or they will use dentists who are on their payroll and under tremendous pressure to approve them for treatment. Third, there will be no one monitoring your case carefully. They may or may not have you send in photos, but again, that is completely inadequate. Bodies, rarely follow a blueprint. Because of that, dentists and orthodontists often have to make adjustments to your treatment along the way. These mail-order companies cannot do that.

If your only hesitation about using Invisalign is that you don’t want to go to the orthodontist every two weeks, I have some great news for you. The common treatment plan is to get two sets of aligners that you wear for two weeks and then you go in for an examination once a month. That is half the visits that you were expecting to have to do.

If you want the best, safest treatment, then I would stick to the real deal, which would mean either Invisalign or Spark Aligners.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.

I live way out in the middle of nowhere in Alaska. It takes me about three hours to get to any town of significance. Almost 5 to get to a bigger city. I want to get my teeth straightened using Invisalign. However, I can’t really take a trip which is that far every two weeks for the new aligners. Is there a way this can get stretched for any length of time more than two weeks?

Stan

Dear Stan,

I am glad you wrote. I have three pieces of good news for you. First, you picked a great procedure with which to straighten your teeth. Invisalign does a fantastic job and has a very high patient satisfaction rate.

Second, while the Invisalign aligners are are switched out every two weeks, your dentist generally will give you a full month’s worth and then have you come in to switch them out monthly. That has already cut the number of visits you need in half.

That being said, given your situation, unless there are any complicating factors with your particular case, I bet you can find a dentist who would be willing to come in even less. As I said, that does depend on your particular case, but it is at least worth investigating.

I hope this helps.
Enjoy your treatment, as well as your new straight smile!
This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist.
Click here to learn about Spark Aligners, another option in Invisible Braces.

I have used the same orthodontist for my other two children. They have all had braces. However, now there is Invisalign. He insists it is not as good as braces and refuses to even consider placing them. I feel like my daughter has a pretty straight forward case. Should we just go to a dentist who does Invisalign and skip the whole orthodontist thing?

Stacey

Dear Stacey,

This may not be the best orthodontist for you. Bear in mind that I have not examined your daughter’s bite and there may be complicating factors that I am unaware of. It used to be that Invisalign could only treat the ideal cases. Now, it has improved to the point that it can even take on many of the more complicated cases. There are still some cases which require braces, but not nearly as many as their used to be. If your daughter’s case is a straight forward as you say then the issue is more likely that your dentist has not embraced the technology and is telling you that it is not as good to keep you from going to a general dentist.

My suggestion is that you still see an orthodontist, however, see one who offers Invisalign. In fact, an orthodontist who does Invisalign, may also do Spark aligners. This is another brand of invisible aligners. It has some advantages over Invisalign, however, they can only be placed by orthodontists with specialized training.

One of the advantages of doing this through an orthodontist is the assurance you have that is something does not go according to plan you are already with a specialist that can make any needed adjustments quickly and keep your child’s treatment on track as safely as possible.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.

I have teeth that protrude quite a bit. I went to my dentist hoping to get Invisalign, but he said that he didn’t think I was a good candidate. I don’t know if that is because he really does not think I would be a good candidate or because he doesn’t offer them. Do you know if protruding teeth will be a problem?

Avery

Dear Avery,

Protruding teeth can be treated by Invisalign. However, I have not examined you and there may be some other circumstances that complicate matters. When Invisalign first came out, it could only treat basic cases. Now, it has advanced enough where it can handle all but the most difficult cases.

There are many options in adult braces these days. You may be better served going to see an orthodontist who can offer both Invisalign and Spark aligners. Spark is another invisible braces brand that only orthodontists can place and have some advantages over Invisalign. Plus, you’ll have the benefit of being under the care of someone who has specialized training in tooth adjustments.

This way, no matter how complicated your particular case is, you will be able to get your teeth straightened and have a smile you will be proud to share with the world.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.

I have a son with Down Syndrome. Things are more scary for him than other children. We’ve tried a dentist a few times. None of them have gone well unless we used some type of sedation. His teeth are out of alignment. When I asked my dentist about getting him braces, he said there really wasn’t a point. I’m not sure what he meant by that and I’m trying not to think about the most offensive possibilities. However, I know what it is like to have a bite that is off. When I was a teenager, I had jaw aches and head aches until my teeth were fixed. I don’t want my son to go through the same thing. Is there some type of process for treating a child with Down Syndrome who needs braces?

Cathey

Dear Cathey,

I’m not sure what your dentist meant by there is no point. In fact, a healthy bite is very important. When you have a child that has Down Syndrome, the biggest issue would be sensitivity to his specific needs. Because of that, it is important that you see a dentist and orthodontist who are familiar with special needs care. For instance, some special needs children struggle with certain textures. While some can tolerate traditional braces, others may need a more creative solution or a different type of treatment altogether. There are many options for braces these days.

Special needs dentists will have some useful advice on how to make the transition of using a dentist or orthodontist less scary for your son. I would check out some of the advice that Dr. Tostado gives to patients in a situation like yours. There are some simple things that can be done ahead of time to make for a smoother transition.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.

I am writing a bunch of dentists and a few orthodontists about an issue I have with my smile. I have a HUGE tooth gap. I think the dentist told me about 9mm in width. I am looking for options. I will tell you that the odds are against you as an orthodontist because I really don’t want braces. You’d have to do some convincing about why that is best. I was going to get snap-on smile and had already had all the diagnostics done and my dentist sent it to the company, but they said I am not a good candidate. So, I’m back to square one. My dentist is suggesting Lumineers, but they are pretty expensive so I’m looking for other options. What would you suggest if I came to your office?

Caden

Dear Caden,

Because my specialty is orthodontics, I reached out to a cosmetic dentist I know to make sure you get balanced advice here. He highly suggested you stay away from Lumineers for a couple of reasons. First, they’re usually marketed to inexperienced cosmetic dentists and your case is very advanced. The size of your tooth gap would be enough to fit another tooth in there. That is a very advanced case. One that I would suggest you go to an AACD accredited dentist for and they do not come cheap. They also rarely recommend Lumineers. That brings me to the second reason. Lumineers force dentists to use their lab to do the work, which is not known for producing beautiful results.

My suggestion is for your to close the gap using either Invisalign or Spark Aligners. I know you said you don’t want braces, but these are different. They use clear aligners to straighten your teeth that are invisible even at a conversational distance. You could repair your tooth gap without anyone even knowing you are wearing orthodontics.

I hope this helps. This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Tostado.

I had a fall that ended up knocking a tooth backward. The root of the tooth went forward so far that it is now sticking out into my upper lip. While my dentist was able to even out the visible  part of the teeth, the protruding root is still a problem. It hurts my gums and I can feel it in my nose. It is really uncomfortable. Is there a way to get this root back into its original position. My dentist insists that nothing can be done, but this is so uncomfortable, I am hoping you might know something he doesn’t.

Pamela

Dear Pamela,

There is definitely a way to get this root back in place. Truthfully, your dentist could have crunched this all back into its proper place, if he had done it right away. However, you just have to go with what you have to work with now. Yes, this can be dealt with. However, at this point, you have to wait until the area is completely healed. Once that has taken place, then you can go to an orthodontist and they can move the tooth root back.

This can be done by wearing braces on the area temporarily. It would not take as long braces normally would. There are several options for adult orthodontics. Be aware that it is possible that you will need a root canal treatment eventually. Just make sure the dentist does not leave any gutta percha or root canal cement in the crown of your tooth when they do it or your tooth will discolor much more quickly.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.

I ran across this website for dental bands called Teeth Gap. They are designed to close a tooth gap without having to get braces. Are you familiar with these? Do they actually work?

Brad

Dear Brad,

I am glad you wrote before ordering these. First, I see the prices vary from $25 up to $70. Aside from being very expensive for what is, at their essence, fancy rubber bands, they can actually do real damage to your teeth. These do not work like orthodontics do. With braces or other type of orthodontic, such as Invisalign or Spark Aligners, the movement of your teeth is carefully controlled.

This is not the case with these dental band type of treatments. They tip the tooth to move it. This has the potential of creating gaps on the outside of the bands as they move the teeth inward. However, they can also do serious damage to your teeth as well. It can even cause healthy, adult teeth to come loose.

This before and after image is an example of a case by the Teeth Effects Company. While the gap is closed, this patient now has a few problems. The first thing I noticed is how the front tooth on our left looks like it has been pulled out of the socket a bit. I have a strong suspicion that this tooth is now a bit loose.

Whenever you use traditional braces, after each carefully planned movement there is a pause to give the bone time to integrate with the tooth root again. There is no way to do that with the teeth bands. What you don’t want is to have teeth that no longer have a gap, but can fall out of your mouth! In fact, I read of a case where a young woman had her adult teeth come loose as a result of this type of procedure. You can read about it here.

Additionally, you will notice that there are small gaps on either side of the central incisors that were not there previous to treatment. It may even be that the gaps are bigger than they seem here because there is no way to verify this. It looks like the teeth in that area have been photoshopped a bit too because the lateral incisors are a different shape than they were before the treatment.

An Alternative to Traditional Braces

Because you are just talking about tooth gaps, you may be a candidate for Fastbraces. However, if you absolutely don’t want any type of metal braces, there are two aligner treatments that are a good option for you: Invisalign and Spark Aligners. Both of these can straighten your teeth without using metal. No one will even know that you are straightening your teeth.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.

I have a problem with my two front teeth looking way too big and long. They also stick out in front of the rest of my teeth. Everytime I look in the mirror, I feel like I look like a beaver. I don’t know what to do with them. My dentist suggested either braces, which won’t really change how long they are or removing them and putting dental implants in the area. What do you think?

Sandra

Dear Sandra,

Please do not have your teeth taken out. There is a much simpler solution for your situation. Bear in mind that I haven’t actually examined you. Going just on what you described, I would have the teeth shaved down a bit on the biting edges as well as the sides. This can be done with diamond burs and diamond strips.

After that is complete, you can have an Invisalign or Spark Aligners procedure done. Both of these systems use clear aligners to straighten your teeth. These are not visible even at a conversational distance. They will also straighten your teeth in about half the time as traditional braces will.

Combining these two procedures means that you can get rid of the Beaver look without having to get rid of the teeth themselves! Find a great orthodontist who can do an in-person exam you and give you their recommendation.

This blog is brought to you by Bee Cave Orthodontist Dr. Alberto Tostado.