Invisalign & clear aligners
Find out about clear aligner treatment at myPediaclinic and whether it may be appropriate for your child or teen.
Clear aligners are transparent, custom-made trays that fit over the teeth and move them a small, precise amount at a time. They come out to eat and to brush, which is both their appeal and their catch — they only work if they are actually worn. Invisalign is the best-known brand; several systems work the same way.
Is this your teenager?
Aligners suit many cases of crowding and spacing and mild-to-moderate bite problems, in adults and in responsible teenagers. They are more likely to be the right route if:
- Most of the permanent teeth are already through
- The crowding or spacing is mild to moderate rather than severe
- Your teenager is self-conscious about visible braces
- They play a contact sport, or a wind instrument
- They are organised enough to keep to a daily routine and not lose things
- You would rather they had no food restrictions during treatment
How treatment starts
- 01AssessmentWe check the teeth, bite and stage of growth, and confirm whether aligners will do the job — or whether braces would serve your child better.
- 02A digital scanWe use an iTero scanner to scan the teeth and plan every movement precisely. In many cases it also shows a preview of the expected result before you begin.
- 03The aligners are made and fittedYour child is shown how to wear and care for them, and gets the sequence of trays to work through.
- 04Progress checksWe confirm the teeth are tracking as planned and hand over the next sets. If something is not moving as expected, the plan is adjusted.
How they work, and the one thing that decides it
Each tray is worn for one to two weeks before your child moves on to the next, and each one adjusts the teeth a small, precise amount. They come out to eat, to drink anything other than water, and to brush — and they go back in afterwards.
They have to be worn 20 to 22 hours a day. This matters more than brand, appearance or cost, and it is the most useful question a parent can settle before deciding. A teenager who keeps to the routine often does very well. A teenager who takes them out and forgets to put them back sees progress stall, and treatment drags well past the plan. For that child, fixed braces are the safer choice, because they work whether or not anyone remembers.
Some teen aligners carry small wear indicators that fade with use, so wear can be checked honestly rather than argued about. Very complex bite or jaw problems may still need braces, or a combination of both. And aligners are not automatically faster: both routes move teeth at the speed bone allows, and the timeline follows the complexity of the case rather than the appliance.
Supervised, not mail-order
Aligners ordered online and posted out skip the in-person checks that protect the teeth. Moving teeth without a proper assessment and without monitoring risks gum recession, bite problems, and teeth that simply do not end up where they should — and if something starts to go wrong mid-treatment, there is no clinician watching and no plan to correct it.
Clinic-supervised treatment is planned and monitored by a qualified clinician who checks the teeth, gums and bite as it goes, and changes the plan if the teeth are not tracking as expected. Fixing an unsupervised course afterwards usually costs far more, in money and in time, than doing it properly the first time.
If your child has already started with a mail-order kit and something has gone wrong, an assessment can establish where the teeth actually are and put a monitored plan together from there.
Caring for aligners, and what comes after
Most of this is routine, and the routine is the treatment. An aligner that spends the evening in a pocket is not moving anything.
- In for 20 to 22 hours a day — out only to eat, to drink anything other than water, and to brush
- Brush and floss before they go back in, so nothing is trapped against the teeth
- Rinse and gently clean them daily, and never in hot water — heat warps the plastic out of shape
- Straight into the case when they come out. Most lost aligners were wrapped in a napkin and thrown away
- Tell us promptly if one is lost, and we will advise whether to go back a set or forward while a replacement is arranged
- A retainer afterwards, worn faithfully. It is what stops the teeth drifting back
Who you would see
Every doctor consults in English and Arabic.
Is Invisalign better than braces?
Neither is better in the abstract. Braces handle the most complex problems and need no discipline at all, because they are fixed on. Aligners are discreet and comfortable but must be worn consistently, and they suit mild to moderate cases. The right answer comes from an assessment of your child’s teeth, bite and stage of growth, not from a price list.
Will my teenager actually wear them?
You know the answer to this better than we do, and it is the most useful thing to settle before deciding. Think about how they are with daily routines and with keeping track of their things. Some teen aligners include wear indicators that fade with use, which turns it into a shared check rather than a source of nagging.
Are aligners faster than braces?
Not automatically. Timelines are driven by how complicated the tooth and bite movements are, not by the type of appliance. For complex corrections, fixed braces are often the more predictable and the quicker route.
Can my child eat normally?
Yes, once the aligners are out. There are no food restrictions, which is one of the real advantages over braces. The trays come out for anything other than water, and go back in after brushing.
What is the iTero scanner for?
It takes a digital scan of the teeth instead of a tray of impression material, and it is what the movement plan is built from. In many cases it also shows you and your child a preview of the expected result before treatment starts.
My child is younger and still has baby teeth. Is this for them?
Start with an orthodontic assessment rather than with an appliance. Around age seven is when enough permanent teeth are through for an orthodontist to read the bite properly, and most children assessed at that age are simply monitored.
What will it cost, and does insurance help?
We set out the cost after the assessment, before anything starts. Ask what any quote includes — the scans, all the check-ups, and the retainers at the end — so you are comparing like with like. Some insurance policies contribute toward orthodontics, particularly where treatment is medically necessary rather than cosmetic. Payment plans are available; reception can confirm the current terms.
Your next step
Start with a conversation.
Tell us what is on your mind and reception will confirm the right specialist and a time.
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- Sat-Fri: 9AM - 6PM
- Insurance
- Direct billing with 15 insurers. Check yours
- Find us
- Al Razi Building 64, Block B
Dubai Healthcare City