Experiences of Invisalign vs train track braces for children?

[Quppity]

Due to long waiting lists we opted to do orthodontic treatment privately for our daughter who is 12. She could have either Invisalign or train track braces. It is more expensive for Invisalign but the cost is not extortionate as private train tracks are also pretty expensive.

I am just needing to weigh up the two and which would be better. I wonder if Invisalign is more difficult for a child to manage and train tracks better once they are used to them. But is Invisalign less sore? How do they cope at school with both these methods? And once treatment t is finished do they need to wear a retainer at night still ? I would be really interested in hearing some real life experiences if anyone would be kind enough to share them with me

I've has both. Nhs train tracks approx age 13-16, Invisalign as a young adult approx 25-28. I hate the Invisalign. It's a nightmare having to brush after eating and pit back in, I hate the scans you do on your phone means I paid thousands to an ortho that never bloody sees me, the app always tells me I can't move on, my teeth weren't that bad (due to already having nhs braces) and its taken years of Invisalign. I wish I sucked it up and got train tracks again. I only didn't as I already look young in my professional job and was worried about clients etc not taking me serious 😂

We have just paid for ds2 (15) to have ceramic braces due to NHS waiting lists. They look so much better than the metal ones and we figured it was worth the relatively small extra cost given we were having to fork out privately anyway. Only downside is we have had to cut out curries from the menu to avoid staining his braces!

Gosh it’s good to know about the staining issue. So the ceramic ones are like the classic metal ones but white? I was thinking they looked a good compromise but we do eat quite a lot of curries so I wonder if there would be a risk of them ending stained and looking worse than the metal ones

I also just looked up ceramic braces and it says online that the ceramic parts are bigger than the metal ones so not as comfortable. Not sure how true this is. Did someone say they have a gel to put on the inside of their lips to reduce their lips catching on the braces all the time?

Mine have wax that they stick onto the brackets to cover the sharp parts - I think like anything (eg wearing in new shoes) it takes a while for your body to get used to them but then you ‘toughen up’. The issue is that the minute your mouth gets used to them they’re updated and cause a new issue! I’m so proud of my kids for dealing with the discomfort etc and taking good care of their teeth throughout years of treatment. Well worth it.

All 3 of my children have had invisalign with no problems whatsoever. A little sore overnight on the changeover day only but not even paracetamol needed. All of them are quite self conscious and loved that you can barely tell when the aligners are in.

It all depends on the brand of brackets. I had radiance brackets and they are completely clear NOT white however they can shatter when removed which is annoying (not really for the patient more the clinician and nurse as it takes longer) 3m use clarity which are more of a dusky white and they can be bulkier dependent on whether they are self lighting or use modules. Modules are the elastics which hold the wires in place and they are clear - these are what go yellow when you eat curry, turmeric, ketchup etc. they get changed every appointment. It's all relative depends how bothered the patient is. I was more than happy with my clear fixed braces - I'm an ortho nurse btw so this is my area of expertise!

I have Invisalign and was told I might need a couple of buttons at the consultation and that they try to place them on teeth that are hidden.

Pfft. I had them fitted and I had THIRTEEN bloody buttons.
Week 11 now, and I still hate them and would never recommend for a teen.
I brush (and floss) around five times a day and cannot wait til I'm done!!

The orthodontist should advise you. In some cases either may be fine. But depending on what needs done, traditional train tracks might be better. Orthodontist advised us that either would be ok, but because DS1 needed his two front teeth pushing up and his to next teeth pulling down he advised the traditional train tracks would be best and would achieve this best.

Plus, at aged 13-18 loads of kids in secondary have them, so it's so accepted.

@quppity what did you decide in the end? I am in a similar situation with DD. Orthodontist has suggested Invisalign with the expander piece to move my daughters jaw forward at the same time. Totally treatment time to move the jaw and straighten the teeth is 14 months. If we do train tracks she needs a twin block appliance first for 6 months to a year and then 18 -24 months for the train tracks. So totally treatment time with Invisalign is shorter. DDs teeth don’t actually look bad but she has a slight cross bite which definitely needs to be sorted. The NHS option was to extract 4 teeth and use train tracks but the private orthodontist was appalled by this and told me it would make her smile narrow and ensure that her jaw stays small (which apparently can cause problems in later life). So Invisalign seems like the best solution although I am a bit worried with all the comments about how it’s a total faff. DD is pretty responsible and totally committed to the process but I guess you never know until you are in the process. She certainly likes snacking on food so she will fine that pretty hard….

@Tiggernpoo if she needs a twin block then she must have an overjet of 7mm or more and therefore should not be considering Invisalign and you cannot correct this properly with aligners and the facial balance and profile will suffer. Is this a dentist with 'special interests' or a specialist orthodontist? Invisalign will give a basic alignment but won't fix the bite and if I was told I needed a twin block then that's definitely the way to go for a good result. Once upper teeth are aligned it gives the illusion that they stick out even more.

These are Essix retainers used for longterm retention. They are thin rigid plastic and usually need replacing every 2/3 yrs. They cost around £100 per pair.
Retainers are needed whether you have fixed or Invisilign.
DS completed his ortho last year, he had a lot of space rather than crowding and his canines erupted into his palate so he needed ortho. He doesn’t wear his retainers and has had some movement but he will have some natural closure of some of the gaps that have opened.
Fortunately I’m a dentist so I keep an eye on things.

@20viona her overjet/overbite is very small, and her overcrowding is mild hence the option of Invisalign - it is the teen version with something called a Mandibular expander built in (sp?) which does a similar thing to a functional device (I.e.moves the jaw forward). He’s a very experienced orthodontist/maxiocranial facial surgeon….specialises in kids/teens and also works on complex cases at a large London hospital in addition to having a private practice. He doesn’t think she needs twin blocks as the amount of movement required is fairly small but I think he was trying to explain how train track braces can’t move the jaw by themselves and you would require something like a twin block to do that. Invisalign was his preferred treatment but I had asked about metal braces as an alternative….still a bit worried about all the maintenance.