Have you been lured by these trendy and convenient mail order aligners companies to get your teeth straightened at a fraction of the cost compared to an orthodontist? Sounds too good to be true, right?!
Let me ask you a question: Would you let a clerk at your local drugstore perform laser eye surgery on you or a loved one? No? We thought so. Let us give you the scoop on mail-order aligners, the lackluster and sometimes dangerous outcomes resulting from mail-order aligner service, and why you should want to be treated by only a board-certified orthodontist instead of mail order teeth aligner service.
So here is the scoop on mail order aligners
- With mail-order aligners, you never get to consult with an orthodontist and ask questions. You do not even know who the doctor is who approves your case (along with numerous cases they get sent to their cell phone to approve daily). This means you can’t ask questions about your treatment plan and you are not able to have a supervised treatment to ensure everything is going according to plan and evaluate your oral health.
- You have to make your own goopy impressions at home and may not have a precise outcome if you do a DIY. And you are required to it over and over again (with a fee) until you get it right.
- Your teeth and/or occlusion (bite) could end up even worse than when you started (we have seen more and more of these patients over the years and had to retreat these cases).
- You will end up paying more if you need to get retreated by an orthodontist after a failed mail order aligner treatment. Going to an orthodontist in the first place could save you lots of money in the long run.
- You don’t get a comprehensive evaluation and clinical exam with x-rays, thus you could face the real possibility of periodontal sequelae (such as recessions, attachment loss, tooth mobility, or even tooth loss) and a compromised occlusal outcome. This has happened.
- Your treatment plan does not include attachments on your teeth, which are often needed to optimize tooth movements. Real orthodontists understand biomechanics and customize aligner treatments for each patient, to create the best outcome and long-term occlusal stability. Without attachments, you may never get the results you want.
- What they don’t tell you is that the aligner treatment is limited and may not actually get your teeth straightened all the way. This is why their sneaky slogan says “straighter teeth” NOT “straight teeth.”
You should be treated by an Orthodontist Instead of using mail order aligners!
Did you know that it takes 10 years to become an orthodontic specialist? Four years of college with pre dental education and admission exams. Four years of dental school with National Dental Board Exams and rigorous testing to get a DDS of DMD degree. And THEN another 2-3 years of specialty training for orthodontics. Yep, that is 10 years of rigorous training and examination. About 1/3 of orthodontists take this one step further to become Board Certified in their specialty by the American Board of Orthodontics! Having that level of experience, care and compassion in every step of your treatment leads to predictable positive outcomes that contribute to life long oral health.
To those mail order aligner companies, you’re just a “consumer”, unlike at an orthodontist’s office, where you are our patient and we take an oath to do no harm. For a comprehensive consultation for clear aligners, or traditional metal braces, go to an orthodontist, call Roland Park Orthodontics.
