Twin block v Invisalign for Ds 12 years old

[Rickiebikie]

I’m hoping that someone can help! My Ds has an overbite which apparently is ‘quite severe’ and his top jaw is also a bit narrow.

I have taken him to two orthodontists, one recommended Invisalign for a period of 2 + years and another advised to go the twin block brace route again this will be for about 20 months.

My questions are:

Which is the most comfortable to wear and will cause him less discomfort whilst doing the job?

Is the Invisalign very fiddly to
Put in / take out?

Does the Invisalign actually widen the top jaw also?

Agggh I honestly don’t know which route to take. Hoping you lovely people can throw some light on it for me! Thank you

The twin block isn’t nice and it takes time to get used to but it’s amazing. One of my kids had it for about 4 or 5 months and it make the hugest difference. They then had tracks which will be on for just over a year, would have been less if it wasn’t for Covid. The teeth look incredible, really amazing and they were shocking, all over the place.

Personally I didn’t feel the need to pay privately for Invisalign when we could do twin blocks and tracks on the NHS and as so many kids have these anyway they didn’t feel awkward or embarrassed by them

Thanks @ sophoa!! How long did it take for your child to get used to it and other than the drooling and lisping was it painful?

I don’t think it was painful for long, maybe a day or so. They got used to it pretty quickly and I don’t recall speech being a massive issue. They took it out to eat which I know some orthodontists advise against but ours said not to eat with it in

My dd had a massive overbite which needed twin blocks. Awkward and a bit embarrassing, but with practise she was fine. The results were amazing and about 8 months. After which there were train tracks. They are achy and painful for a few days and it took a week before she managed to wear them at night. Twin blocks move the jaw, Invisalign only moves the teeth.

Twin block for the expansion it makes a huge difference. It does take time to get used to but so worth the effort. My DCs treatment was about 20 months start to finish, twin blocks then brace.

I had twin blocks, like all braces they are uncomfortable for a few days but otherwise fine. They made a huge difference to my teeth and jaw.if I remember rightly (it was 20years ago) I used to take them out to eat. I'm so glad I had it done and frequently get compliments for my smile.

they do totally different jobs; even if you went for invisalign to straighten (v expensive option), you'd need the blocks to align the jaw. One of mine had the blocks for just over 6 months. Got them on the Friday and was speaking just fine by monday, but they do not give an attractive look while they're on - because they pull the lower jaw forward in an exaggerated way, it is quite an aggressive look! The other one is now on the list for them - we got v lucky and waited only 5 weeks last time (despite orthodontist saying it would be at least a year adn we should go privately to avoid losing the benefit of a growth spurt etc etc). If it's really "quite severe" you will get NHS treatment.

Twin blocks actually creates more space to allow teeth to straighten, invisalign just straightens what is there. Would he need teeth removed for Invisalign to work? Ds had twin blocks then tracks, there is a thread on here about it. His teeth look great now, but he needs a retainer at night to keep them like that.

Thanks guys! @lizs I don’t know neither said they just both said that he would to have major intervention when he’s older if we didn’t do anything now! I think I may have to call them to get the full skinny really.

@Rickiebikie the teeth here were all over the place, all growing higledy piggledy and absolutely no space for them in the mouth. We’ve managed to do the whole thing with no extractions due to the work of the twin blocks. I would say they did about 80% of the work. I asked the orthodontist to show me the photos of the teeth at the first visit and honestly, it’s like a completely different mouth

Hi,

I know this is an old thread but I’m bumping as I have exactly the same dilemma, a twin block and then train tracks or Invisalign with mandibular advancement (so this does the same job as the twin block and braces in one). I’m leaning towards the Invisalign but it is going to strain my finances £4.6K vs NHS, scraping the money is going to be difficult but it can be done.

So my question is to anyone that has done it, is it that much better for the patient (13 year old DS)? Less painful etc? Anyone know?

Thanks

My DC had twin block and train tracks if you can get that for free I’d go for that. Results were amazing. Twin block is unpleasantries start but they get used to it quickly

Hi there, I am just trying to make exactly the same decision. I don't want to go down the invisalign route if its not as good. I am worried that its just a bigger commission for the dentist! If they have the same result then I don't mind paying as it seems much quicker and easier for dd, but the blocks sound so good, is Invisalign really as good?

I’d definitely go for the NHS one if it’s an option. However some people I know ended up having to go private because NHS waiting lists were so long, with all the covid catching up to do, and the jaw growth part needs doing asap, so you may not have the choice depending on your child’s age.

My DD had the twin blocks for about 6 months, in amongst years of train track braces. Her jaw moved loads as she wore it religiously, so her overbite is now a thing of the past. It’s amazing what they’ve done. However it’s taken nearly 4 years all in all!

NHS appointments were only available in school hours - they keep all the convenient ones for private patients - so that might also be a factor given how much school they’ve all missed lately. Appointments every 6 weeks for years on end soon add up, including eating into your holiday allowance if you need to take time off work each time. It wasn’t helped by me having two DCs with braces at the same time, but needing different appointments, plus emergency ones in between when a bracket came off etc - it felt like I lived at that bloody orthodontist!

The blocks make it hard to talk - my DD refused to talk in school with them in. When she first got home with them DS1 (who’s an adult and should know better!) said “why is tlalking hlike hlthis ?” at which she promptly burst into tears. They’re not fun, but very necessary in her case. I don’t know much about Invisalign but presume they must have a similar option with them to have offered it as a choice, but for nearly £5k, I just couldn’t do it. Depends a lot on your circumstances. I told mine that if I had the £5k spare I’d rather spend it on an awesome holiday and they both agreed!

We went for the twin block in the end. The first couple of days were a little tricky but after that no problem at all. The result is fantastic and Ds is really pleased with how his teeth look. He just wears it at night now and hopefully in the next couple of weeks he can stop that also! I’m happy we went for the twin block in the end! :)