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What Is a Crossbite?
When you have a normal occlusion or bite, your upper teeth close slightly outside of your lower teeth. A cross bite occurs when the upper teeth close inside the lower teeth. It can occur on one or both sides of the mouth. It can also affect most or all of the upper front teeth.
What Can Cause a Crossbite?
Generally, the issue is due to genetics and can be passed from parents to children. However, sometimes it can be due to other factors, such as baby teeth that failed to fall out at the right time.
It could be due to adult teeth failing to erupt properly. These issues can impact the development of adult teeth and jaws, potentially leading to a crossbite.
Oral habits can be another potential factor, such as thumb or finger sucking.
Problems That a Crossbite Can Cause
You may be wondering if it is worth correcting a crossbite, especially if the issue seems minor. You might also think that the problem of a crossbite is merely aesthetic, and it’s certainly true that correcting it can improve your facial appearance.
However, an uncorrected crossbite can cause oral health problems, including:
- Temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ), which affect the jaw joints and can cause jaw and facial pain, headaches, and pain that spreads into your neck and shoulders.
- Sleep apnea, a sleep disorder that can affect overall health.
- Speech issues where you find it difficult to enunciate certain words clearly.
- Tooth decay.
When your teeth align properly, it can alleviate any TMJ problems, ensure your teeth wear down evenly, and generally protect your oral health. Treating sleep apnea can help protect your overall health and ensure you get a good night’s sleep.
Can Invisalign Correct a Crossbite?
Invisalign is an aligner system that utilizes clear plastic aligners to gently and gradually shift teeth into their correct positions. It can be very effective in treating numerous orthodontic problems, including some crossbites. Invisalign can be especially effective for mild or moderate crossbites.
However, Invisalign may not always be the right choice if you have a more severe crossbite. Sometimes, fixed braces can be a better solution for treating a very complex orthodontic issue, or, in rare cases, surgery might be required.
Benefits of Using Invisalign for Crossbites
Invisalign is a tried and trusted orthodontic system that has been used worldwide for decades. It utilizes the latest aligner technologies, and treatment is digitally planned to ensure a high degree of precision.
Other benefits of choosing Invisalign can include:
- The clear aligners are extremely discreet and virtually invisible.
- The aligners are smooth and comfortable to wear.
- They are easy to remove for oral care and mealtimes, so there are no dietary restrictions, and there is no need to use special tools to brush and floss.
- Invisalign is minimally disruptive to everyday life.
- Treatment is predictable.
Invisalign Treatment Process for Crossbites
The treatment process for Invisalign for crossbites is outlined below.
Step One: Consultation & Diagnostics
Schedule a consultation with our Invisalign dentist to learn more about using this treatment for crossbites. Our dentist will conduct a dental exam to assess the degree of crossbite needing correction and to determine if Invisalign is a suitable option.
Digital diagnostics include a 3D scan of your teeth, digital photos, and X-rays, which are used to plan your treatment accurately using Invisalign’s proprietary software. We take the time to discuss your treatment plan with you, and as part of this process, we show you virtual images of how your teeth could look once your crossbite is corrected.
If you are satisfied with the proposed treatment plan, we can finalize it and order your computer-generated Invisalign aligners. These are custom-made to ensure a precise and comfortable fit.
Step Two: Invisalign Treatment
Wearing Invisalign aligners is easy. We will show you how to insert and remove them, keep them clean, and discuss other guidelines, such as how often to change them for the next set in the series, to help keep your teeth moving in the right directions.
You will find treatment has little impact on everyday activities. You can still eat whatever you wish since you remove the aligners for meals. You don’t need to do anything differently when brushing and flossing, and you can follow your normal routine, remembering to clean your aligners before replacing them.
Step Three: Invisalign Checkups
Throughout your treatment, we will need to see you every 6 to 8 weeks, just for a quick checkup to ensure your teeth are moving as anticipated. During these checks, we can address any queries that may have arisen, provide more aligners as your treatment progresses, and, if necessary, adjust your treatment plan to achieve an optimal outcome.
Step Four: Invisalign Retainers
Once you have finished wearing all your sets of aligners, your crossbite should be fully corrected, leaving you with a beautiful, healthy, and functional smile. The final stage is to ensure you wear Invisalign retainers.
These retainers resemble aligner trays but are designed to maintain teeth in their new positions, rather than moving them any further.
You will need to wear these continuously initially, looking after them just like aligner trays. Gradually, as your teeth settle down, you can reduce the wear time until eventually you only need to wear them once or twice a week, overnight.
Treatment Duration
Most people complete treatment within a year, but if you have a more moderate crossbite, it may take longer. We suggest that you continue wearing retainers for life to prevent an orthodontic relapse.
When Invisalign is an appropriate treatment for a crossbite, it can provide excellent results with minimal disruption to everyday life. Most people will not notice that you are wearing the aligners, as they are very discreet.
NYC Dentistry Center6 E 45th St #801
New York, NY 10017
(45th St. btw 5th Ave / Madison Ave)
(212) 518-6096