Inman Aligner

The Inman Aligner has special Nickel Titanium coil springs that with aligner bows that gently causes the teeth to guide into their new position. These gentle forces are active over a very large range of movement, which means the Inman Aligner works can work very quickly.

Most cases complete in 6-18 weeks and because it's removable you can take it out to fit with your lifestyle.

This is what's involved in the treatment with the Inman Aligner:

• Impressions are needed in order for the lab to design your custom made Inman Aligner.
• Initial fitting of the Aligner.
• Wear the Aligner 16-20 hours a day.
• Regular Inman checks every 2-3 weeks.
• As with other orthodontic treatment, after treatment is completed with the Inman Aligner, retention is recommended for life to prevent relapse. Retention can come in the form of a lingual bonded retainer or an Essix retainer.

Straightening your teeth will not only improves the look but will also benefit the long-term health of your teeth. Teeth may continue to move throughout a person's life so crowding or spacing tends to worsen over time. Uneven teeth can also be prone to uneven wear causing exposure of dentine that wears faster and absorbs stains. Straighter teeth are far less likely to suffer from this ageing effect and can mean much less future treatment.

The Inman Aligner is designed to treat the upper and lower front teeth only. After an orthodontic evaluation with your dentist it will be possible to know if the Inman Aligner is appropriate and any other recommend treatment options.

Advantages:

• Rapid results that you can see immediately.
• The brace is removable; however you should not remove it unless advised to do so.
• Many consider the Inman Aligner to be rather cost effective as it is normally cheaper than conventional braces.
• You will only require one aligner, as opposed to having to invest in replacements.

Disadvantages:

• It is only active on the front four teeth of the upper and lower jaws.
• The Inman Aligner will only work on straightening the front four teeth. Therefore, if you wish to straighten teeth further back, you may require a more extensive brace.
• The aligner is somewhat more bulky than other options such as Invisalign, which makes them slightly more obvious.
• Not very many clinics offer treatment with the Inman Aligner system as of yet, however this number is increasing and the procedure becomes more demanded.

The ideal patient for the Inman Aligner treatment is an adult who had braces when they were kids (or maybe they didn't), and they quit wearing their retainers and now their bottom teeth or their top teeth have started to shift and crowd again. While they certainly don't like the fact that their teeth are crowded, they do not want to go through the whole process of having braces again and a metal brace is not so much aesthetically pleasing.

Like any orthodontic appliance there is some discomfort for the first few days until your mouth gets used to it. Your speech may be initially affected but rest assured it will get better. You may salivate more and find it a little difficult swallowing at first. After the first two weeks teeth may feel loose however this is normal.

Once teeth are straightened retention is very important. This can be achieved through a fixed wire retainer or a removable retainer. If this is not worn then the teeth will relapse.

Other terms used to refer are 'bonded' or 'fixed' retainers. That's because they're attached directly to your teeth. They cannot be removed.

Construction: The simplest form of this type of retainer is one where it consists of a single strand of solid or braided wire. The wire is then bent so it fits passively up against the backside (tongue or palate side) of the straightened teeth. It is then bonded in place using dental composite (standard dental bonding material).

Essix style orthodontic appliances are also sometimes referred to as 'invisible' retainers because they're made using clear plastic. They may also be referred to as 'overlay' retainers because they fully cover over the teeth.