The question of whether or not to attempt to fix a posterior crossbite in an adult patient with Invisalign might be tempting, but the default is not to attempt to do so. However, some professionals continue to try to do so because there is no explicit warning from Invisalign not to do so.

Just because there is no message that something is impossible doesn’t mean that it is A. possible or B. doesn’t come without harmful side effects. So, let’s discuss the impacts of attempting to fix a posterior crossbite with Invisalign or Clear Correct.


There are side effects that are possible from attempting this correction. These side effects are part of an important assessment in the risk-benefit analysis that you will need to go through as a dental professional. Fixing a posterior crossbite rarely outweighs the risks of killing a tooth, pushing a tooth through the buccal plate, killing the nerve, mispositioning the tooth, and causing problems later, among other risky possibilities.

There are some possible scenarios where you can make some corrections with Invisalign. One example of this scenario where you can shift is a unilateral crossbite where the midlines are off. Correcting this midline may end up correcting the bite as a result.

However, most cases do not have positive outcomes and shouldn’t be committed to fixing with Invisalign because of the risks. The priority here should be saving the patient’s teeth and prioritizing long-term outcomes rather than correcting the posterior crossbite. Examine these cases with an unbiased lens and think outside of the box of Invisalign. If you don’t or can’t offer other solutions than Invisalign, these patients need to be referred to another provider.

As medical professionals, we carry many responsibilities on our shoulders. One of these responsibilities includes looking at the totality of imaging when taking it. That means if you are taking a CBCT, you are responsible for reading and interpreting the full image, even if you are only looking at one area.

If there is pathology within the image that you do not review or report on, you are liable for missing that on imaging. So, let’s discuss how Beam Readers works for screenings and how to ensure that you are in the clear before making treatments when you notice abnormalities, such as supernumerary teeth.


When performing this imaging, it is crucial to get radiology read by a licensed OMR or maxillofacial radiologist to sign off on treatment in the presence of abnormalities on imaging. Going through this extra step is essential for making sure that you are clear to move forward and make sure that these reports are given to you in writing. This is important because if something happens down the line, you deferred to the person who is more experienced than you, and that was the proper course of action decided at that time.

You may not be qualified to do so or may not have OMR resources in your area, which is why Beam Readers is an option for reviewing CBCTs and other dental imaging. Using Beam Readers is a quick way to ensure you begin treatment safely. Beam Readers is an online service capable of performing these readings and reviews for about $50-100. They have 60 OMRs on staff in addition to other imaging techs who can answer your orthodontic questions and review in all 50 U.S. states and Canada. For specific questions, pricing can be a little over $100, but they also have bulk and high-volume pricing available.

Have you ever had any questions about twin blocks? Twin blocks are highly important tools to use as part of your dental consulting and Invisalign services to help grow a lower jaw – mainly if the patient is mandibular deficient and is still actively growing.
What You Need to Know First
Before you start with twin blocks and braces, it’s first important to check that the patient is eligible for a twin block overall. A twin block will only work if the patient is mandibular deficient and if their skeletal structure is still growing. It’s not necessarily enough to just assume this is the case or take the patient’s word for it. Taking accurate measurements can help you ensure that you get the best possible results overall.
Other Applications for Twin Blocks
In addition to growing the lower jaw, twin blocks can also be customized depending on your unique requirements. As such, it’s important to keep in mind the key things you have learned during your SmileDirectClub online orthodontic courses and sessions to ensure you’re not “biting off more than you can chew,” as it were.
Don’t be Afraid to Do Things in Stages
One of the most important things to consider when providing twin blocks is not to rush into things too fast. If your patient has too significant a gap, this will be too much of a difference to make in a single go. As such, in these scenarios, you’ll want to do things in stages instead to reduce the risk of things going wrong.
Installing a Transverse Screw
Did you know that, in many cases, it’s possible to optimize your patient’s care by doing several things at once (so long as this won’t strain the muscles and jaw)? A transverse screw can be installed for crowding cases or if there’s a deficient maxilla transversally.
Don’t Use it for Deep Bites
Unfortunately, it’s important to keep in mind that twin blocks are not often effective for deep bites. While you can potentially try this, plenty of braces and Invisalign options may be more effective for deep bites.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve been looking to begin providing twin block services as part of your Invisalign and braces packages, it’s important to consider today’s overall key points. Indeed, here at SmileDirectClub, we strongly recommend that you learn all you can before getting started with twin blocks and the like to increase the chances of your cases being successful. And luckily, there are plenty of great orthodontic courses out there that can help with this.

Keywords
Invisalign
Orthodontic Courses
SmileDirectClub
Braces
Dental consulting

When it comes to orthodontics, one of the key things you’ll need to know is how to manage bracket repositioning and forced eruption cases. If this is something you have been struggling with, we’ve outlined some of the key things you need to know about how to fix posterior open bite or for re-bracketing purposes as part of your ortho course.
Triangle Elastics and Posterior Box Elastics Won’t Work!
First of all, it’s important to recognize here that if the wire is passive, triangle elastics and posterior box elastics just won’t work – after all, this will just result in forced erupting, which will most likely bounce back into place after.
Two Ways to Handle Bracket Repositioning and Forced Eruption
If you are looking to finish up the alignment process for your patient and are already satisfied that the arches are fully coordinated, you could consider step bends after finishing leveling. However, as a general or pediatric dentist following an ortho course, forced eruption may be more effective.
If the gums are inflamed, or you’re already starting at the gum line, you may want to remove the tie and loop it under or over the bracket without tying it in as you normally would. Don’t forget to explain this to your orthodontics patients, too, or else they may panic that the braces haven’t been fitted correctly!

Keywords
Orthodontics
Ortho course

Have you ever wondered whether you should be using Invisalign 3 or Invisalign 5 aligners? As ortho consultants, ensuring you know the key differences between these two aligner types is highly important. As such, as part of your online orthodontic courses, it’s important to consider these two Invisalign aligners and how they differ.
Invisalign 3 vs Invisalign 5
All ortho consultants ought to consider several key differences between Invisalign 3 and Invisalign 5. These include the following points:
– Price: Invisalign 3 lab fees are marginally cheaper than Invisalign 5, costing $1879 and $1985 respectively; however, this does not necessarily mean better value.
– Additional aligners: While Invisalign 3 includes just three additional aligners, Invisalign 5 offers unlimited additional aligners.
– Timeframe: The Invisalign 3 plan only runs over a three-year period, while Invisalign 5 runs over five years in total.
Overall, Invisalign 5 is likely to offer better value for money overall. Unless you are dealing with a very straightforward case, Invisalign 5 is likely to be a better choice overall, as it offers more revisions and greater flexibility. This also allows you to also offer better value on retreatments.

Keywords
Online orthodontic courses
Invisalign
Ortho consultants

Invisalign is a useful tool in orthodontics and can even be considered the best phase 1 product for alignment. However, those performing phase 1 orthodontic treatment cannot rely on Invisalign alone to handle all of their phase 1 cases. In this way, it’s important not to use Invisalign as a crutch for all of your orthodontic treatments.

Some cases are inappropriate for using Invisalign first due to the nature of the case. Let’s get into some examples where Invisalign is not going to make an impact in correction and what the alternative methods for correction should be.

Unfortunately, no use of Invisalign will help cases that require skeletal expansion in order to improve the bite and the airway. These cases in which the patient’s mouth is constricted by the small side of the palette require the use of a skeletal palette expansion, which cannot be performed by wearing Invisalign. In this case, the palette needs to be physically manipulated rather than just the teeth themselves.

Another example of where Invisalign will not make a big impact in phase 1 is habit correction. Harmful habits such as thumbsucking and pacifier use cannot be corrected with the use of Invisalign without first breaking the habit. Some habits occur when the patient is sleeping, such as mouth breathing or accidental tongue thrusting, which will misalign the teeth regardless of the correct alignment methods. As soon as alignment is over, the habits will once again misalign the structures you attempted to correct.

All in all, Invisalign is an extremely helpful tool for alignment, but when alignment does not solve the underlying issue, Invisalign should not be your first line of defense. In other cases, Invisalign is extremely helpful and should be in your toolkit for phase 1 orthodontics.

During the recession, it’s easy to see overall revenue go down because clients focus less on big procedures for their teeth and more on trying to save money due to fear. Recessions can be scary, but most economic downturns are made worse by hoarding cash and not reinvesting in the community. These behaviors hurt dental practices, especially because people undervalue the health of their teeth.

For dentists and GPs, the worst thing to do is to try just to wait out the recession and focus on bread-and-butter dentistry. Instead, why not look into a new aspect of dentistry and pick up performing phase 1 orthodontic treatment?



Phase 1 ortho treatment is the process of fixing bites for young children to set them up for further orthodontic and dental success. This process is incredibly easy to implement and learn and can be done completely with removables. You can learn through traditional courses and obtain CE credit, or learn through free online resources and launch phase 1 services easily that will bring in additional income for necessary treatments during a recession.

When you start taking phase 1 clients, you can begin by being picky with your clients to make things easier for you. These are clients that are considered “extra” to your practice, and by choosing the correct clients to start phase 1 with you, you set yourself up for success in the long term.

A good client for phase 1 is the right age and is responsible with their teeth. They are interested in having some corrections done, and they are doing good with their brushing and feel confident in the dentist’s office. The best part about starting phase 1 treatment now? Your clients will come back to you for their phase 2 treatment which will be just as easy after completing phase 1.

What You Need to Know About the In-Face Smile Feature

Have you ever wanted to find out more about the in-face smile feature offered as part of your Invisalign treatment plan creation? The in-face smile feature is an exceptionally helpful, AI-powered tool that can help you come up with the right treatment plan to create brilliant before and after photos of the patient’s smile. However, before you get started, you need to know a few key things about the in-face smile feature to help inform your decision.

What is the In-Face Smile Feature?

The in-face smile feature is a specialist tool offered by Invisalign that offers a before and after AI-powered simulation of how the patient’s smile will look. This tool allows the patient to choose the right type of option for their own treatment plan.

Using the In-Face Smile Feature

As part of your dental coaching, training on how to use the in-face smile feature is crucial. Indeed, this brilliant Invisalign tool can make it so much easier to show your patients the type of results they can achieve with Invisalign. As such, it’s incredibly valuable for informing your patients about how you’re going to proceed with their aligner case.

However, you can also use the in-face smile feature to help inform your treatment plan creation. For example, the in-face smile feature can be hugely helpful if you have a difficult case with lots of space or crowding in the mouth. The tool allows you decide which direction to move the teeth in, optimizing your treatments overall.

Keywords

Dental coaching

Invisalign

Treatment plan

As an orthodontics dentist, there’s a lot you’ll need to consider to ensure you’re interpreting your patients’ x-rays accurately. However, sometimes, it can seem incredibly difficult to understand what your patients’ x-rays mean and what you’re looking at. Of course, this can undeniably leave you scratching your head in confusion. Luckily, we’ve outlined some of the key things you should know as part of your ortho training to help you understand what you’re looking at and formulate the right treatment plan going forward!

Tricky Cases in Panoramic X-Rays You Should Know

There are numerous different challenges that can make your work in orthodontics a little trickier. However, for the most part – though this may vary from state to state, so check your local laws first – the x-ray taker is responsible for accurately reading and interpreting the x-ray results.

In line with this, it’s your responsibility to ensure that the x-rays are read properly before making a treatment plan.

#1 Odontoma

An odontoma is one of the most common tricky cases you’ll experience in panoramic x-rays. An odontoma will often need to be referred to OS due to the complexity of the case.

#2 Condensing Osteitis

Generally speaking, condensing osteitis may need a slightly different approach. If you have previous x-rays from the patient that show the growth or lesion hasn’t gotten any bigger, it may not need specialist support; however, if you’re unsure, don’t hesitate to get in touch with an expert for more help. However, tooth extraction may be required in some cases.

#3 Super Numerary

If you’ve completed your ortho training, you’ll likely have heard about super numerary teeth – in other words, this occurs when there is an additional tooth that is not usually found in series. Super numerary teeth may need to be surgically removed.

Final Thoughts

Treating more uncommon conditions can be a little tricky. Getting further support (such as from the CBCT) may be helpful if you notice areas of defined and undefined margins and areas on the x-rays, or if you see a case that needs a more specialized treatment plan than you can provide.

Remember: if you have any queries, don’t hesitate to reach out to our Straight Smile Solutions team today!

Keywords

Orthodontics

Treatment plan

Ortho training

What Packages are Available with Straight Smile Solutions?

Have you been looking to take your orthodontic solutions to the next level? If so, starting out with top-rated professional orthodontic courses could be just what you need, and our friendly team here at Straight Smile Solutions are on hand to help. So, with this thought in mind, we’ll be looking at some of the different online orthodontic courses we have available and how these solutions might work for your business’s needs, too.

Our Online Orthodontic Courses and Packages

Did you know that Straight Smile Solutions offers our clients several different online orthodontic courses and packages?

We recognize that no single solution is right for everyone, which is why we’ve created several plans to help you find the ideal option. Our solutions are available for any dental clinic, lab, or DSO, depending on your need for help.

One-Off Cases – $449

If you only need our professional support for a one-off case, our one-off plan, A-La-Carte, might be right for you. Our A-La-Carte package offers a single 20-minute case review and full HIPAA-compliant screen sharing, ensuring you can get support with your own dentistry needs.

Make sure you have all of the relevant analysis in place (such as a Ceph report)  and your ClinCheck or treatment plans are all set up and in place to streamline the process and ensure you don’t end up overpaying for multiple cases.

Ongoing Plans

If you need ongoing support, our subscription plans for online orthodontic courses might be what you need. We are proud to offer three packages for ongoing orthodontic courses, which vary depending on the support you require.

Premium – $899 / month

The premium package is our standard package for those needing an ongoing solution, offering several key features that make it an effective strategy for many businesses – mainly those with seasoned experience wanting occasional support. Our premium package includes secure mail communication and support for braces, Phase 1 interceptive, and growth modification. Premium plans include up to 10 cases per month.

Concierge – $1499 / month

If you’d like to take things a stage up, our Concierge plan builds on the value of the Premium plan to offer even more in-depth support. The Concierge plan is available for braces, Phase 1 interceptive, growth modification, Invisalign, and other doctor-directed clear aligners. The Concierge plan included unlimited cases.

Concierge plans come with both long and short meeting offers. Short meetings are on a one-case-only basis and run for up to 20 minutes, meanwhile long cases run for up to 50 minutes. Responses are available by numerous means of communication, including phone consultation, SMS, video chat, HIPAA-compliant Zoom screen sharing, and more. We aim to respond within 24 hours or less, making this the ideal option for your own needs.

VIP – $2999 to $9999 / month

Our VIP package could be the right option for you if you need a more tailored plan! Indeed, our VIP plan offers the greatest versatility overall in terms of the different plans available. As a result of this, if you have been looking for a thorough option that really helps support your ortho work, VIP could be the plan for you.

The Premium package includes full support for Invisalign, doctor-directed clear aligners, braces, Phase 1 Interceptive, and Growth Modification, just to name a few. As with the Concierge plan, our VIP package includes unlimited cases. You’ll also be able to get in touch with us by whichever communication method you prefer most, which includes:

• video chat
• secure mail
• HIPAA compliant Zoom screen sharing
• phone consultations
• on-call communication
• SMS
• planning portals
• co-hosted webinars

Contact our Experts at Straight Smile Solutions Today

With four different packages on offer, we here at Straight Smile Solutions are proud to support your work through our online orthodontic courses and services. With this thought in mind, if you need help or new ideas, please don’t hesitate to contact us today, and we’ll do our best to help you find the ideal strategies for your orthodontic needs.

Keywords

Orthodontic courses

Online orthodontic courses

Straight Smile Solutions