Dental Forum

Orthoclear Anne

How do we feel about soaking our trays with clear mouthwash? I just bought this Vanilla Mind mouthwash (CVS brand) and it seems to be crystal clear....was thinking about leaving my trays in it while I ate.

In theory, it shouldn't stain, right??

Only 51 weeks to go....[/B][/QUOTE]

I've had mine for a week and a half and have been really good about wearing them....about 22.5 hours a day.

But today I am in nonstop snack mode plus I'm having people over tonight for poker and I know i'll want to be drinking/snacking.

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Originally posted by Christine:
Hello Kindred OrthoClearers!

I have a question for those of you with the buttons on your teeth and windows in your aligners. I've been on tray #7 for over a week. When I first put on the bottom aligners, one of the buttons (on a crooked front tooth) did not lock into its window like all the others do. The tray kind of just sat on top of the button. I thought the tooth would move into position, so I let it be.

But it's been bothering me, especially since I haven't seen (or felt) any movement in that tooth, so I called my ortho about it. They said that this wasn't normal, and to simply enlarge the window so that the button could 'click' into place.

Lucky me, I own a Dremel with a cone-shaped sander. It was perfect for widening the window. Never thought I'd use it for something like this!

Has anyone else had this happen to them?

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Originally posted by MusicLover:
Two of my buttons aren't fitting into the holes at all....Did your teeth finally shift into the buttons.

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Howdy MusicLover,

I should have posted follow up on my experience with the buttons not fitting. I went to see my ortho after widening the hole on my own (they said I did a great job, BTW!). They had ordered me a replacement of the tray I'd dremmeled (it was waiting for me) and told me to wear it for one week before moving on to the next set of trays. The ortho's assistant was the one who told me to widen the hole; according to my ortho, the holes should have been left as they were . I think the assistant got into some trouble.

My ortho said that sometimes the trays won't seem to be clicking into place, but that it's part of the whole process. And now, on tray #14 (I'll be on #15 early next week- wahoo!), all my teeth- even the one that didn't seem to fit properly into the aligner- have been moving along beautifully. I have not had to make any adjustments through OrthoClear for my aligners. My trays 'click' just fine with all the buttons now.

Hope this helps!

Thank you SO much for your reply. You have helped me to feel so much better about this. I'm still a little confused about WHY the buttons don't fit, but at least now I know that there are others who have gone through this. More importantly, since you are pleased with your progress, that is a BIG relief for me! I hope things go as well for me.

BTW, I found your blog page. Do you plan to post more photos anytime soon?

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Originally posted by Christine:
Howdy MusicLover,

I should have posted follow up on my experience with the buttons not fitting. I went to see my ortho after widening the hole on my own (they said I did a great job, BTW!). They had ordered me a replacement of the tray I'd dremmeled (it was waiting for me) and told me to wear it for one week before moving on to the next set of trays. The ortho's assistant was the one who told me to widen the hole; according to my ortho, the holes should have been [b] left as they were . I think the assistant got into some trouble.

My ortho said that sometimes the trays won't seem to be clicking into place, but that it's part of the whole process. And now, on tray #14 (I'll be on #15 early next week- wahoo!), all my teeth- even the one that didn't seem to fit properly into the aligner- have been moving along beautifully. I have not had to make any adjustments through OrthoClear for my aligners. My trays 'click' just fine with all the buttons now.

Hope this helps!

[/B]

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Originally posted by MusicLover:
Christine,
BTW, I found your blog page. Do you plan to post more photos anytime soon?

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Well, since you asked, I posted a new photo of my teeth (taken yesterday) at my OrthoClear blog.

http://myorthoclear.blogspot.com/

I'm just adding to the original posting, so you'll find the photo of "Month Nine" as the third photo listed.

I'm also happy to add that I will be making my final payment for my treatment this month. It's great to finally be rid of these recurring payments! Still have a ways to go with the treatment, though.

im going to get ortho clear... i have an appointment with my ortho on mon for the "record" appointment...taking molds i guess...

what are these "buttons" are they visible? big? small? and for the "shaving" does it permanently keep your teeth in that shape afterwards?

i would really appreciate help. could someone tell me the ups and downs of orthoclear? thnx!

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Originally posted by animalperson247:
hi all

im going to get ortho clear... i have an appointment with my ortho on mon for the "record" appointment...taking molds i guess...

what are these "buttons" are they visible? big? small? and for the "shaving" does it permanently keep your teeth in that shape afterwards?

i would really appreciate help. could someone tell me the ups and downs of orthoclear? thnx!

~Sophia

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http://orthocleer.blogspot.com/

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Originally posted by Christine:
Well, since you asked, I posted a new photo of my teeth (taken yesterday) at my OrthoClear blog.

http://myorthoclear.blogspot.com/

I'm just adding to the original posting, so you'll find the photo of "Month Nine" as the third photo listed.

I'm also happy to add that I will be making my final payment for my treatment this month. It's great to finally be rid of these recurring payments! Still have a ways to go with the treatment, though.

Cheers!

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I started my OrthoClear treatment with my first aligner yesterday. The pain for me has not been so much pain as pressure, and mild at that. I have to say I expected more. The feeling is strange, but my lisp has gone away for the most part in one day.

I will ask my ortho to see my OrthoView at my next visit. I knew nothing of that until I visited the forum here. I would love to see my animation.

What's the general consensus on cleaning as I am a bit paranoid as far as that goes. From what I have read, brushing, flossing, brushing the aligners once a day, and some Listerine?

Thanks again all. Hopefully I will be able to impart some wisdom as I get further along.

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Originally posted by JGE:

What's the general consensus on cleaning as I am a bit paranoid as far as that goes. From what I have read, brushing, flossing, brushing the aligners once a day, and some Listerine?

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Hey JGE,
Don't panic about the whole cleaning ritual. You'll get used to it.

I brush and floss my teeth after each time I eat. I rinse with fluoride each morning. During the day I use Listerine pocket pack strips (great for preventing barnyard breath).

Since I don't have the patience to stand around brushing my aligners, I soak them in Efferdent/Polident twice a day- once in the AM, once in the PM. This way, I just need to rinse them off after my meal instead of scrubbing! For mid-day meals, I rinse the aligners off and soak them in water. If you let them dry out, they start to smell ugly.

Haven't tried the Efferdent yet, but I might give it a try soon.

JGE:

FYI, I haven't had any problems brushing them with toothpaste - no scratching or dulling that I can see. The most time consuming part to clean with the toothbrush are the edges of the trays (the part closest to the gumline) for the back teeth. Hope your treatment is going well for you.

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Originally posted by Christine:
Hey JGE,
Don't panic about the whole cleaning ritual. You'll get used to it.

I brush and floss my teeth after each time I eat. I rinse with fluoride each morning. During the day I use Listerine pocket pack strips (great for preventing barnyard breath).

Since I don't have the patience to stand around brushing my aligners, I soak them in Efferdent/Polident twice a day- once in the AM, once in the PM. This way, I just need to rinse them off after my meal instead of scrubbing! For mid-day meals, I rinse the aligners off and soak them in water. If you let them dry out, they start to smell ugly.

Good luck with your treatment!

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After reading the post,
- many mentioned whitening after Orthoclear. Is this recommended?
- Someone said lisp last for a couple days. Is Orthoclear that thick to create a lisp?
- What is the button I keep reading about?

To remove the Othroclear, the ortho office told me to just pop it out. Seems like it would break in doing so.

I am also a former braces wearer. From what I understand, cost is greatly affected by the length of your treatment time. More severe cases take more trays, and thus, more time (and money for additional visits to the ortho).

My OrthoClear treatment does not include whitening. I understand that many dentists offer it at the end of Invisalign treatments.

My lisp never fully went away. I notice it most on words that end in "s."

See previous posts about buttons - they are small, tooth-colored pieces (similar to brackets on traditional braces) that are attached to your teeth to help the aligners "hold on" to your teeth. They are usually only placed on a few teeth. To see what buttons look like, visit the blog pages listed on the previously posted "OrthoClear, anyone?" pages.

I am now on Tray 3 and I have never had an experience with broken aligners. I think the aligners were improved before I started treatment.

Keep us posted on how you are doing!

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Originally posted by mee:
I just read all 6 pages and have a few questions. I have had metal braces 7 years ago and need them again. The best price an ortho gave me was $3,400 for 8 months of Orthoclear.

After reading the post,
- many mentioned whitening after Orthoclear. Is this recommended?
- Someone said lisp last for a couple days. Is Orthoclear that thick to create a lisp?
- What is the button I keep reading about?

To remove the Othroclear, the ortho office told me to just pop it out. Seems like it would break in doing so.

Thanks for your time!

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I am in my second week with my second set of trays, and so far, all is going well.

Quick question though - with regards to the soaking in Listerine and having the trays "weakened". I just experienced my first head cold with Orthoclear, and as a result of constantly blowing my nose and coughing (sorry for the visual), I've been rinsing my mouth with clear mouthwash WITH THE TRAYS IN from time to time in addition to taking them out and scrubbing them with toothpaste. I hate having "sick breath".

The trays fit pretty easily, and I can't remember from my 1st set of trays if I am supposed to feel pressure the entire time they're on. These fit perfectly over my teeth, but I don't feel the pressure anymore. I'm sure I'm being paranoid, but I am wondering if perhaps I've weakened my trays by my constant mouthwashing ritual?

How does everyone's trays generally fit? Mine only hurt for about a day and a half last time and this time.

I'm on my 4th set. And my experience is that every set is different. Some are tighter and more uncomfortable than others at the beginning, but by the second week, they're fine. And some are easy to pop out and others are harder. I guess it all depends on what a particular tray is trying to accomplish.

I'm still using Listerine Whitening mouthwash as a soaking solution and haven't had any problems at all. Didn't soften the aligners. And yes, I've swished it around in my mouth with the aligners in. Especially because I don't have a problem with eating small pieces of food with them in. And I don't restrict beverages at all. My biggest accomplishment was eating a cream-filled doughnut at a meeting this morning. I've got to wear these things for 2 years, so I'm going to find out their limitations early!

I recently went in for aligners 16/17. I asked the staff at my ortho's office if they could tell me when I would be finished with treatment, since Invisalign seems to have a finite set of aligners prescribed for each case.

To my surprise, the staff told me that there is no 'set amount' of aligners with OrthoClear. Simply put, you're done when you're done. The ortho is sent an email with the next to the last set of aligners indicating that treatment is close to finished and requesting info regarding refinement if necessary.

I really am happy with my progress with OC, but I sure would like to know where I am in the whole process of treatment. Do I have two months or ten months to go? Arrgh! Anyone else have a similar story?

Thanks for the Efferdent tip. I tried it this weekend and it worked great. My trays look really clear now. The dull film is gone.

MusicLover

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Originally posted by Christine:
Hey JGE,
Don't panic about the whole cleaning ritual. You'll get used to it.

I brush and floss my teeth after each time I eat. I rinse with fluoride each morning. During the day I use Listerine pocket pack strips (great for preventing barnyard breath).

Since I don't have the patience to stand around brushing my aligners, I soak them in Efferdent/Polident twice a day- once in the AM, once in the PM. This way, I just need to rinse them off after my meal instead of scrubbing! For mid-day meals, I rinse the aligners off and soak them in water. If you let them dry out, they start to smell ugly.

Good luck with your treatment!

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I never had a lisp, so I'm really thankful about that. All my trays have been different- some hurt really bad and I eat oatmeal for 3 or 4 days while others don't seem to do much. I have had a few trays crack because I have so many buttons, and my ortho just told me to move onto the next tray.

I end up brushing my teeth about 4 times a day, I floss at night, and I soak the trays in Efferdent in the mornings which keeps them from smelling funny. It can get really annoying and sometimes I find myself just chewing a piece of sugarfree gum afterwards instead of brushing. Bad habit I know, but I've always eaten 5-6 small meals a day so trying to eat 3 big ones has been a hard adjustment for me.

I've seen a couple people post links to their computer animation of their progress made by OC....is this something I can get from OC or can I only see it at my Dentist's office?

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Originally posted by OCB:
I've seen a couple people post links to their computer animation of their progress made by OC....is this something I can get from OC or can I only see it at my Dentist's office?

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Hey OCB,
Where did you see the links to the animation of the OC progress? I have only been able to access the animation at my ortho's office.

I would love to get a copy of my own OC animation. So far, my ortho has not been helpful in providing me with info about how to get a copy yet. Has anyone rec'd a copy of their OC animation to view at home?

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Originally posted by ms.deleon:
I just had a question about the buttons, I don't have them, but was wondering is this something you get at the very beginning or you'll eventually get it if needed?

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I think it depends on the case. I was never told about needing buttons until my second set of aligners. (I've got 10 buttons total, 6 top, 4 bottom) From what I've read on the boards, some people are told early on, others not told until right before the buttons are applied (as was my case).

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Originally posted by Christine:
Hey OCB,
Where did you see the links to the animation of the OC progress? I have only been able to access the animation at my ortho's office.

I would [b]love to get a copy of my own OC animation. So far, my ortho has not been helpful in providing me with info about how to get a copy yet. Has anyone rec'd a copy of their OC animation to view at home?

[/B]

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This, of course, is rather annoying, but I am on my third set of trays (as I had a crack due to the buttons and had to move on) and am seeing great progress, so I carry on. I'm quite pleased so far. My lisp is far gone and no one really notices at all. I've also gotten over having to brush my teeth a million times a day. Christine's Efferdent once a day (at least) is the best advice yet!

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Originally posted by JGE:
Christine's Efferdent once a day (at least) is the best advice yet!

J.

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Hey JGE,

Thanks, but I can't take credit for the Effordent tip. I read about it on the Invisalign thread back in September 2005. I'm glad that it's working for you (and many others as well!).