Exceptional Orthodontic Treatments in Pasadena
Orthodontic care is the diagnosis, treatment, and correction of crowded, rotated, or misaligned teeth. Even mild forms of orthodontic issues can hinder your oral health by contributing towards a bad bite, tight spaces in between teeth, and much more. At Pasadena Smiles, our dentists, Dr. Vincent Spero and Dr. Farrah Koutchek, believe your smile is too important to be affected by dental alignment issues and offer comprehensive orthodontic care with aesthetic clear aligners and ceramic braces.
Whether you’re looking to improve your oral health, correct problems with alignment, or you simply desire a more attractive smile, our treatments are designed to quickly straighten your smile without compromising treatment quality. To schedule your orthodontic consultation, please contact our Pasadena dental office today!
CALL OUR PRACTICE REQUEST APPOINTMENT
Why Is Orthodontic Treatment Important?
Orthodontic care is important for many reasons. Not only can properly aligned teeth and jaws improve aesthetics, but they also contribute greatly to promoting good oral health, proper digestion, speech, and improved overall quality of life.
Orthodontic treatment also helps to improve facial characteristics that have been affected by a crooked jaw or teeth. Fixing these problems not only helps make your smile more visually-appealing, but it also contributes to a healthier mouth. Crowded and crooked teeth create tight spaces that make it more difficult to clean increasing your chances of developing tooth decay and gum disease. An improper bite can interfere with the chewing process which can lead to abnormal wear on the jaw, teeth, and can even impact your digestion.
A straight set of teeth has also been known to improve confidence. As a patient’s esthetics improves, they respond with enhanced self-esteem and greater self-affirmation.
What Orthodontic Treatments Do You Offer?
Our dentists at Pasadena Smiles proudly provide the following systems for orthodontic treatment throughout Los Angeles County:
- Invisalign® Clear Braces: An alternative to traditional orthodontics that use brackets and wires. The virtually-invisible brace system uses custom-made plastic trays that discreetly straighten your smile as you wear them comfortably over your teeth.
- Six-Month Smiles®: Although similar to metal braces, this system uses aesthetic brackets made from enamel-colored ceramic materials to blend effortlessly with teeth.
How Exactly Does Invisalign Work?
Traditional braces straighten teeth into ideal positioning using metal brackets, arch wires, and rubber bands for the necessary pressure and tension. The metal brackets are temporarily cemented onto the surfaces on your teeth, and the arch wire runs between each bracket across your smile. After each adjustment from your dentist, the wire applies more tension that helps shift your teeth to the desired position.
Invisalign, however, uses a series of custom-made, clear aligner trays that use pinpointed pressure to gently push teeth rather than pull them into ideal alignment. Each aligner is designed to apply the right amount of pressure to the targeted areas, gradually straightening teeth.
7 Benefits of Invisalign Clear Aligners
With the use of the digital and 3D technology of the Invisalign system, treatment is more straightforward and more predictable.
In addition to our team being able to show you what your end result will look like, Invisalign can also provide the following benefits:
- Nearly invisible appearance
- Comfortable & safe treatment
- Removable design
- No dietary restrictions
- Uninterrupted oral hygiene
- Improved dental & oral health
- Improved natural aesthetics
What Does Treatment with Invisalign Involve?
Your Consultation: As the first step in the Invisalign process, your consultation involves taking the time to get to know you, your current dental health, and your smile personally. This includes Drs. Spero and Koutchek discussing and listening to your needs, concerns, and goals as well as analyzing your medical history. Our dentists will then conduct a thorough examination of your teeth, gums, and jaw to determine the severity of your orthodontic situation.
Building Your Treatment: Once you and our team have determined Invisalign is the right choice for your needs, we work closely alongside you to build a custom treatment plan. We’ll begin with a series of x-rays, impressions, and photographs of your teeth to create a digital road-map that our dentists can follow. Using Invisalign’s digital software, Dr. Spero and Dr. Koutchek can predict how your teeth will align over time while you wear your custom trays. They’ll even be able to show you how your teeth will look in the coming weeks, months and at the end of your treatment.
Your First Aligners: Invisalign’s system involves fabricating your custom plastic aligners which must be replaced every two weeks with a brand-new set. Your custom aligners are designed to fit comfortably in your smile using smooth, clear plastic that won’t irritate your cheeks or gums. With each new set of aligners, you’ll likely feel some discomfort because each tray is designed to fit teeth as they become straighter. This is how you can be sure your Invisalign treatment is working!
Your Day to Day: While undergoing Invisalign, you must wear your aligners for up to 22 hours a day. This is why our team often recommends orthodontic treatment with clear aligners for responsible teens and adults who are more likely to comply with Invisalign’s treatment requirements. Your trays will need to be worn all day and night except when eating, drinking and practicing your oral hygiene routine. You’ll also need to visit our office every six weeks so our dentists can monitor your progress and modify any details if needed.
After Invisalign: Once you’ve completed your treatment, smile alignment preservation may be necessary with a retainer. Retainers are important appliances for preventing orthodontic relapse, where teeth shift back out of place even after undergoing treatment with braces or clear aligners.
How Do I Clean My Teeth Properly When Wearing Invisalign?
When undergoing treatment with Invisalign, the good news is your daily oral hygiene routine can go uninterrupted because your aligners are removable. All you have to do is keep up with the key aspects of strong oral healthcare.
Be sure to brush your teeth twice a day and floss thoroughly at least once a day or after every meal. Rinsing your mouth after routine brushing and flossing with an approved mouthwash is always a great idea to help rid your smile of harmful bacteria.
Understanding How Six-Month Smiles Works
The Sixth Month Smiles system is an aesthetic-based orthodontic treatment that works by straightening the most visible, front teeth in your smile with a predicted completed treatment time of just six months.
While this system is similar to traditional metal braces, as it also uses brackets and wires, it differs because it uses ceramic or tooth-colored materials designed to blend in better with the natural shade of your teeth. The Six-Month Smile braces of today are less visible because clear wires are also available. Ceramic braces are strong and durable like traditional braces and can be used to treat minor to more complex misalignment issues.
What Issues Are Best Addressed Using the Six-Month Smiles System?
Six Month Smiles treatment is designed to address many levels of misalignment. This orthodontic procedure can treat the following issues:
- Gaps between Teeth
- Overcrowding
- Crooked Teeth
- Teeth Out of Place
- Rotated Teeth
Why Consider Six Month Smiles?
Compared to traditional and clear braces, Six Month Smiles offer an ideal hybrid treatment that uses the best of both traditional and innovative orthodontics. By eliminating the metal workings of traditional braces and keeping the benefits of guided pressure, your treatment will be just as effective as conventional braces.
Sixth-Month Smiles is also discreet, by using clear brackets and tooth-colored wires the braces are virtually unnoticeable. If you are concerned about the visual distractions metal braces can cause, Six Month Smiles is an ideal option for straightening teeth without interfering with your natural appearance.
Perhaps the most notable benefit of Six-Month Smiles is that you can achieve a straighter, healthier, and more visually-appealing smile in as little as six months, in about half the time it takes with traditional orthodontics.
Handling Orthodontic Emergencies
When your clear aligners or ceramic braces appliances are first put on, it's common to experience mild amounts of soreness or aching as teeth begin to move into their new positions. While our experienced dentists do all they can to provide the necessary information you need to keep your smile healthy and safe throughout treatment, emergencies can still happen.
In addition to providing emergency appointments 24 hours a day, including weekends, we’ll schedule your care immediately, making sure you get the treatment you need when you need it most.
What Do You Consider Orthodontic Emergencies?
Emergencies that need immediate care include:
- Traumatic injury to the mouth, teeth, and face
- Infected gums or swelling of the mouth, gums, or face
- Debilitating, unmanageable pain in the mouth or face
If you or a loved one are experiencing any of the above situations, call our Pasadena Smiles office immediately. Our personable and knowledgeable team will work with you to make sure you’re seen as soon as possible so that you can get back to normalcy sooner rather than later.
Get Started Towards a Straighter and Healthier Smile Today!
When it comes to your smile, few things come close to improving your confidence and oral health like straighter teeth. Pasadena Smiles is proud to help responsible teens and adults throughout Los Angeles County enjoy healthier, more visually-appealing smiles. To discover how you can benefit from our available orthodontic treatments, schedule a consultation with Drs. Vincent Spero and Farrah Koutchek today!
CALL OUR PRACTICE REQUEST APPOINTMENT