Braces and Invisalign are two dental treatments used to straighten teeth. They have a lot in common regarding how they work. However, there are also many differences between braces and Invisalign, which can help you choose the right treatment for your orthodontic needs. Some of those differences are in detail below:
The Main Differences Between Braces & Invisalign
1) Price
The cost for braces can range from $2,500-$8,500. The price varies depending on the length of time it takes to straighten teeth (two years), the number of visits required (typically 5-6 per year) and the type of braces you acquire.
The cost for Invisalign is typically between $6,000-$9,000. And this varies as well due to the number of trays required throughout the whole treatment. Individuals who opt for Invisalign must wear their aligners for at least 20 hours per day.
2) Treatment Time
The average treatment time for braces is 22-26 months. Braces are fixed into teeth and take about 20 minutes every few weeks. By contrast, the average treatment time for Invisalign is 9-15 months but can vary depending on your situation. It’s not fixed into teeth but instead into a series of removable aligners that are changed every few weeks.
3) How They Feel
Braces are essentially metal wires connected to brackets on your teeth. The orthodontist tightens these metal wires throughout your treatment, which can cause pain or discomfort. Invisalign, however, is a series of clear plastic trays that you wear over your teeth. The trays are changed every two weeks. Only the aligners in front of or behind your current tray can cause discomfort or pain from time to time.
4) Ease Of Eating
Because Invisalign is a series of removable trays, it’s much easier to eat with Invisalign than with braces. This is because you can pull out your tray, take a bite of food, and pop the tray back into place to continue chewing. Because the trays are removable, you don’t have to worry about them getting in the way while you eat or drink anything, which can make meals much more enjoyable.
5) Symptoms
Symptoms such as earache and sore teeth are common when one starts orthodontic treatment. This is because of the difference in handiwork between braces and Invisalign. Braces attach to the front of your teeth while Invisalign attaches to the back.
One major symptom for patients beginning orthodontic treatment is earache and tenderness. With braces, your dentist attaches metal brackets to the front of your teeth; the dentist will then hook up these brackets to a wire that goes behind the tooth. The handiwork makes it so that when you turn on the wire, you pull directly on the root of one’s teeth, causing pain in the ear canal. With Invisalign, the wires are attached to the back of your teeth, which keeps them from tugging directly on the root of one’s teeth.
Another common symptom for people who are beginning orthodontic treatment is a pain in their gums. This is because of the difference between braces and Invisalign. The handiwork with braces causes pain in your mouth because metal brackets are used to attach wires, pulling directly on the root of one’s teeth. However, Invisalign uses a plastic material that is much more comfortable and less likely to cause toothaches, which can be a common problem when beginning orthodontic treatment.
6) Appearance
Another difference between braces and Invisalign is the way they look. Because traditional braces are metal wires fixed to your teeth, they can be seen when you smile or talk. In contrast to the clear plastic aligners of Invisalign which are perfectly invisible while you’re wearing them. Even when you smile or talk, there is no way for others to tell you’re wearing Invisalign unless they look very closely at your teeth. If you want to make your treatment as unobtrusive as possible then Invisalign might be the one for you.
7) Removal
With Invisalign, you take out the trays in front of or behind the tray you’re currently wearing and eat food. When finished eating, put the tray back into place and enjoy a meal without interruptions. While removing Braces takes a long time because the entire attachments have to be removed from your teeth by your dentist. And this is done if the desired look of your teeth has already been achieved or if you specifically requested to stop using braces as treatment.
8) Speech Difficulties
Finally, with braces, patients may experience problems with speech clarity from time to time. Since the wires make pronunciation more difficult, some consonants such as P, B, T, D, K can become hard to enunciate clearly. Invisalign does not present this problem since the aligners are removable and speech clarity is less affected.
Similarities & Differences Between Braces And Invisalign
Braces are commonly used to align crooked teeth. However, some people either do not want to use visible braces or cannot due to poor dental health. Instead of using traditional braces, they can opt for the look-alike Invisalign aligners, which function similarly but have a more discreet appearance. Either way, both braces and Invisalign feature the same outcome: helping your teeth look better externally and internally.