Teeth Straightening

Featured Orthodontic Specialist - San Diego Orthodontist

The term teeth straightening can mean a lost of things.  For many people, having their teeth straightened conjures up images of having braces, or even having elaborate headgear.  This is rarely the case these days, and as we’ll see, you can achieve straight teeth fairly easily.

Orthodontic Braces

Orthodontics braces are the main way that children and some adults have their teeth straightened.  As we all know, this is the process where a metal wire is attached to the front of the teeth using brackets.

These brackets are tightened strategically to align the teeth and hence straightening them.  Most braces will also fix the bite of the person wearing them.  This ensure good teeth and a straight bite for a lifetime.  The process is fairly expensive and time consuming but yields the best results.

Invisalign

The Invisalign system is a newcomer to the game of teeth straightening.  Much like braces it pushed the teeth together and straightens them.  But there are no wires, no brackets.  Just a removable device that is completely see-through.

Invisalign will straighten your teeth but it won’t fix your bite.  It is more convenient, but less effective.  It also costs around the same as standard braces.

Porcelain Veneers

Porcelain Veneers don’t actually straighten your teeth, but give the illusion of a perfect smile.  Basically a coating, or cap of porcelain is placed over top of the teeth and shaped to fit the mouth.

The result is natural looking teeth that are straight and perfect and amazingly white.  The cost of this procedure is also fairly steep but it is a really favorite right now among celebrities and other folks in the public eye.

Lingual Braces

Lingual braces are much like standard braces but they fit on the backside of the teeth so they are not visible from the front.  They are fairly painful, extremely expensive, but far and away the fastest most covert way to straighten your teeth without anyone noticing.