Visit 6 - Attachments

Thursday 25th April - 11.00am

My visit today was a little longer than usual because it was now time for my attachments and elastics. Additionally, I needed to be shown how to use the Dental Monitoring app and submit my weekly photos.

I got some AMAZING news today that I now swap my trays weekly (depending on movement) but I could be complete in 46 more weeks if I am strict with my wear time! The dentist said 18 months is just a guideline and I only need a total of 48 trays. So by my calculations my treatment could be complete by Thursday 12th March 2020!!! Woooooo.

Today I was seen by an Orthodontic Therapist, Chantelle, who was lovely. She gave my teeth a quick clean and explained she was going to place attachments on different areas of my teeth to hold my Invisalign trays in even tighter.

Attachments are small tooth-coloured fixings attached to the teeth in specific locations. I needed about 16 on my teeth and none were going to be placed on the very front, which I thought was great as they will be even less noticeable.

The attachments are made from a safe and removable composite bonding material which provide an essential 'anchor' to allow the plastic aligner to move the teeth as planned. Without attachments treatment with Invisalign is must less predictable and more limited in scope.

After my teeth were cleaned, Chantelle roughened up the exterior of my tooth to create a surface to which the attachment would adhere. To apply the attachments, my ortho used a template aligner that had gaps in it where the attachments will be on my teeth.

Then, the template aligner was put in, and a gel that hardened to become the attachment was inserted in those gaps. A light was used to harden the gel. Once hardened, the template aligner was removed and the ortho removed any excess gel that found its way onto my teeth.

This video shows Chantelle removing the excess gel and cleaning around the attachments. The procedure wasn't painful at all, the worst part for me is when the cold air and water splashes your teeth as mine are sensitive! The drilling sounds loud but don't be scared!!! It was honestly fine and over within 45 mins.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/1f3dae_45ca6e04ca0440aa8117d1075c6ed3c0/720p/mp4/file.mp4

I've read that once the attachments are placed, patients often find that their time in treatment changes almost dramatically.

Here is a video before the attachments:

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/1f3dae_c5116733de4b44b48f18eeed88a9b038/720p/mp4/file.mp4

Then what they look like after:

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/1f3dae_c132c15cec494e45bface2801cee632b/720p/mp4/file.mp4

After getting the attachments I found the aligners are no longer easy to pop in and out because the attachments make them fit much more snug than before. For many patients, (including myself!) taking the aligners in and out can now take several minutes, and some patients even need to use a special tool, similar to a plastic pick, to remove them (Queensway give you one of these). Once the attachments are placed, the aligners will feel much tighter than they did previously. Some patients find the wearing of the aligners even borders on painful once they’ve had attachments placed, but I didn't really feel any pain or discomfort.

Check out my next blog about Elastics and why I needed them during my treatment.