What are Invisalign Teen® and Express®?

Align Technology offers two variations of their standard aligner program. They are the Invisalign Teen® and Express® systems.

Each of these options provides the dentist with more flexibility in accommodating the treatment needs of their patients.

Invisalign Express®

This option can reduce the patient's overall costs.

The Express® program makes it possible for a dentist to treat relatively minor orthodontic cases for less. Instead of the standard 20 or 30 sets of aligners, this system only involves the use of 10 or fewer, which reduces the dentist's overhead costs. (See the chart below for further comparisons between this and standard Invisalign®.)

What kinds of cases can it be used treat?

Invisalign Express® is most suited for treating simple cases, such as small amounts of tooth crowding, minor tooth rotations, and small midline corrections (teeth aligned off-center). Some common applications include:

• Treating minor alignment imperfections in front teeth.
• Correcting relapse that has occurred following previous orthodontic treatment (like that caused by the patient not wearing their retainers).
• Making minor alignment changes in preparation for other dental work, such as placing veneers.

Alternatives to Express®.

There are other clear-aligner systems designed to treat many of these same types of cases. One of them is Simpli 5®.

Invisalign Teen®

The Teen® program offers all of the features of the standard Invisalign® system plus some that assist the dentist in dealing with problems unique to treating younger patients.

When is it used?

Invisalign Teen® is intended for use with "less dentally mature" patients. This means those children who have lost their baby teeth but their permanent teeth have not yet fully erupted.

(Most of the problem associated with treating younger children with Invisalign® has to do with the patient's 2nd molars and the difficulty in managing them as they come into place.)

What age group is Teen® used with?

The transitional period described above takes place at a different age with each child. The last baby teeth usually fall out between ages 10 and 12. The 2nd molars are usually in place by age 12 to 14. This places the treatment time window for Teen® somewhere between 10 and 14 years.

What's special about Invisalign Teen®?

Teen® includes all of the features of standard Invisalign®. But it's different due to the fact that compensation for tooth eruption is factored into the treatment. It also includes an allowance for the replacement of up to 6 lost or damaged aligners, something that might be important in treating patients in this age group.

A comparison of Invisalign® systems - General information:

Note: Teen® includes the same features as standard Invisalign®.