Braces vs Invisalign

[speo]

I am looking into getting braces for DS1. The ortho we visited offered braces or Invisalign as options. We could pick. DS1 is a great candidate for Invisalign as he is very responsible. I am curious though as to the long term results between the 2 methods. Has anyone done any research on the 2 methods regarding long term effectiveness? Braces would take 1.5 years and Invisalign 1 year. DS1 really has very little wrong with his teeth, just some slight gaps and a bit of an overbite. I was also a little surprised that the cost is $4600 even with his basic needs. Is this just the going rate in a relatively HCOL? We do not have insurance. Sigh...

[o_mom]

We went traditional with DS2 because the cost was lower, time difference was not much (3-6 months), and they cannot lose the braces (Ortho said this is a big issue with kids and Invisalign).

DS1 has an Invisalign-style retainer and has lost one and broken two in 6 months (he was not a candidate for Invisalign for the main treatment). DS1 is very responsible in general, keeps it in a case, etc., so we knew that DS2 would probably have even more issues with losing/breaking things.

That cost sounds about right before insurance and any cash discounts.

[PunkyBoo]

My DS1 is about to start phase 2 braces. The ortho also gave him the choice and he wants regular braces. He used to wear a retainer (after phase 1 braces) and he said it was really gross to pull it out before eating lunch, making sure it was sitting somewhere safe and then putting it back in. He's a responsible kid but he said it was icky and embarrassing so lots of times he just didn't wear it to avoid the ick factor. .
That price is reasonable. We got 3 quotes for phase 2 and they were all $4300-5800.

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[klwa]

Long term: DH had Invisalign done on his teeth more than 10 years ago. Other than one time when the permanent retainer on his top teeth decided to not be permanent anymore on Christmas Eve, he's had no issues with the effectiveness. (The permanent retainer has been since removed entirely.) He had a large gap in his top teeth and no signs of any reappearance, or new crowding from them. I have more issues from my conventional braces from when I was a kid. (Although, that's partially from the ortho who removed my bottom brackets a month before creating a mold for my retainer. My teeth had already shifted by the time the retainer was molded.)

As for kids with them, two nephews and a niece are currently using them. One nephew "loses" his about every meal. My niece swore she swallowed one in her sleep. (We all tease her about that still. She couldn't believe that she took it out in her sleep. But was convinced she swallowed it instead.) When my niece lost that one, she was told to just switch to the next in the series a few days early. I don't think the "losing" nephew has ever actually lost one, he just has to look for an extra five minutes. And the other nephew has never had an issue with them. None of them (nor DH) have ever broken one, keeping in mind that they only wear one retainer for a fairly short bit.

[AnnieW625]

We just started phase 2 with DD1. Invisalign was never given as an option. The total cost of both phases is $5500; insurance (Delta Dental Premier) only covered $1000.

We live in a HCOL area. We didn’t get quotes from any other orthodontist because I didn’t feel like the price was super high and Dd1 is super comfortable with the dentist, who is her regular pediatric dentist.


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[JBaxter]

I just had them done ( well re done) as an adult. I did traditional ceramic braces it was a shorter duration and cheaper by 1000 I wear a clear retainer during the day for 6 months and a standard retainer at night for well a long time. I would not put either of my younger boys in Invisalign because they would lose them

[khalloc]

My daughter just got her regular braces on today. She needs them for 18-24 months, nothing crazy, just braces/elastics and the price was $5800. So $4600 sounds like a bargain. Her last orthodontist wanted $6500.

[khm]

My daughter needed more work than Invisalign would provide, but she'd be a lot like PunkyBoo was saying, she'd just be awkward and embarrassed by taking it out to eat, etc. So, even if it had been an option, I probably wouldn't have done it.

It might be an option for my son, but with him, I'd also go the traditional route because he'd lose them. Constantly.

A friend of my daughter's needed just a tiny bit of movement and she used Invisalign with no problems. Her mom currently has traditional braces.

The rate you are getting seems very good! All the rates I hear of seem to be in the $5-6k range no matter the method.

[div_0305]

My son was given a choice between regular and Invisalign--cost was the same. We were so glad to have a choice, and he did extremely well with Invisalign. So easy to maintain, keep teeth clean, and zero pain. Plus, he could still enjoy his chewy treats/gum. He's a very responsible kid, so never lost a set. He did break a couple early, but it didn't matter as the next set could be put in. The taking it out at lunch thing was not an issue--all the kids with regular braces asked him if they could switch . Not everyone is a candidate for Invisalign--the amount of correction can't be too much, and if palate issues, definitely not. ETA: He finished his braces 6 months early, too! ETA: cost was about $4500 in our very HCOL which included everything, including the retainers for after braces. We didn't shop around as we knew this ortho was top notch.

[Percycat]

We don't live in a HCOL. We shopped around and visited 5 different orthodontists -- all were referred to us by friends who were happy with treatment. The treatment recommendations for my two children and the resulting costs couldn't have been more different. I was quite surprised. Three of the treatment plans were over $5000 per child -- some recommended single phase, others recommended two phase.

We wound up going with one of the doctors who was under $3000 for my son and later was under $4000 for my daughter --- plus we received a negotiated insurance rate discount through our health insurance, even though we don't have dental insurance. We chose this orthodontist because we liked how he explained his treatment plan the best and he was the most convenient for multiple reasons.

All this to say, I think you really should visit more than one orthodontist. I think you will get different information that will help you make a more informed choice --- even if all of the treatment plans wind up costing about the same.