Aligners are an alternative way to braces of straightening teeth. They are clear, snug-fitting plastic devices, worn for most of the time, used in a series, to straighten the teeth.

Although aligners have been around for over twenty years until recently, their use was limited to treating mild cases. But now, with revolutionary advances in 3D scanning, designing, and printing, we can treat most cases with aligners.

Why have aligners been limited?

In general, aligners are designed by computer technicians, employed by the aligner manufacturing company. They send a proposed treatment scheme to the orthodontist for approval. The orthodontist themselves does not design the aligner nor the design of the final results. This has been one of the many limitations of aligners.

There are many companies that make aligners. Invisalign is the most famous. Clear Correct, Irock and Insignia are just a few others.

At Links Braces, we provide the next generation of aligner treatment. Instead of having the straightening being designed by a computer technician at the aligner company, Dr. Links himself personally designs the final smile and bite using sophisticated CAD software. This is where the personal touch comes in. Each orthodontist has their own style and skill of designing a patient's smile and bite. Dr. Links uses the most advanced orthodontic principles combined with years of experience and expertise of treating orthodontic patients, to digitally straighten the teeth.

Once designed we 3D print the stages of tooth movement from crooked to straight. We then vacuum form the aligners using advanced flexible aligner plastic, zendura flex. This applies the same low force on the teeth that we see with Damon braces. This low force allows for a much greater ability for healthy tooth movement and so a much wider variety of cases can now be treated with aligners.