Invisible aligners are one of the newest and most popular orthodontic treatments for straightening teeth that are crooked, twisted, gapped, or overlapping. They can also be used to correct minor issues with your bite, which is the term used to describe the way in which teeth come together when you close your mouth.
While braces remain a solid choice for orthodontic issues, their obvious appearance can make the wearer self-conscious about their appearance. They are also particularly difficult to clean around and require the wearer to make many compromises about the food that they eat in order to ensure that they don’t damage their brace. Invisible aligners overcome the issues of both function and appearance since they are nearly impossible to spot once in place, and because they can be removed, eating and cleaning your teeth require no compromises whatsoever.
Clear aligner solutions are renowned for producing fantastic results when it comes to cosmetically enhancing the appearance of teeth. However, you may also be wondering if they will have an effect on the overall shape of your face in the same way that some other types of orthodontic treatment can. Here’s what you need to know about what determines the shape of your face and what choosing an invisible aligner solution might mean for you.
What determines the shape of your face?
Have you ever wondered what makes your face the shape it is? Why some people have naturally long, thin faces while others have strong features with an angular jaw? You probably won’t be surprised to learn that our face shape is primarily determined by genetics.
Our jawbone, brow bones and cheekbones are what form the underlying structure of our face. On top of this is an amount of flesh, muscle, and fat. Unsurprisingly, the more flesh and fat that your face has, the softer it is likely to look. This also means that in addition to genetics, age, weight, and lifestyle factors can also influence the overall shape of our face.
Will invisible aligners change my face shape?
You may notice a slight change in the shape of your mouth, particularly if you previously had lips that were being pushed outwards by protruding teeth. You may also see a very slight change in the lower half of your face if your invisible aligner treatment has been used to correct your bite. This is because invisible aligners can correct minor bite problems, such as underbites which could make your lower jaw protrude, or crossbites which cause the jaw to jut out to the side. However, any changes to the shape of your face will be extremely subtle and directly reflect the improvements made to the shape of your teeth and jaws beneath.
One of the key advantages of invisible aligner solutions is the predictability of the results that they can achieve. In most instances, your clear aligner provider will be able to use their technology to create an impression of how you might look at the end of your course of treatment. Then they will be able to share this with you so that you will be able to see any minor alterations to the shape of your face and know what to expect from the outcome of your invisible aligner treatment.
If you’d like to discover more about invisible aligners or to schedule a consultation to see if you would be a good candidate for this type of orthodontic solution, please contact our dental team.
