Featured Service
Invisalign in Meridian, Idaho
What Is Invisalign?
Invisalign uses a series of custom-made, clear plastic aligners to gradually shift your teeth into their ideal position. Each set of aligners is worn for about two weeks before moving to the next set.
Because the aligners are removable, you can eat, drink, brush, and floss normally throughout treatment. And because they’re virtually invisible, most people won’t even know you’re wearing them.
- Virtually invisible, clear aligners
- Removable for eating, drinking, and oral hygiene
- Comfortable, smooth plastic with no metal wires
- Fewer office visits than traditional braces
- Works for teens and adults
- Predictable results with 3D digital planning
Your Invisalign Journey
From your first consultation to your final smile, we guide you every step of the way.
01
Dr. Peterson evaluates your teeth and discusses your goals. No cost, no obligation.
02
We take a precise 3D scan of your teeth to create your custom treatment plan.
03
Your aligners are custom-made and delivered to our office, usually within 2-3 weeks.
04
Wear each set for about 2 weeks and visit us every 6-8 weeks to check your progress.
Invisalign vs. Traditional Braces
| Feature | Invisalign | Braces |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility | Nearly invisible | Visible metal/ceramic |
| Removable | Yes | No |
| Dietary restrictions | None | Some foods to avoid |
| Oral hygiene | Easy, remove to brush | Requires extra care |
| Compliance required | Must wear 20-22 hrs/day | Always working |
| Best for | Mild to moderate cases, adults | Complex cases, teens |
| Office visits | Every 6-8 weeks | Every 4-6 weeks |
Not sure which is right for you? Dr. Peterson will help you decide at your complimentary consultation.
What Clear Aligners Can Correct
Clear aligner therapy addresses the same underlying problem braces do: teeth and jaws that do not line up the way they should. Aligners apply controlled pressure that triggers bone remodeling around each tooth root, allowing teeth to migrate into planned positions and the bone to rebuild around them.
Where aligners differ is in range. They are well suited to mild and moderate corrections and less predictable for the most severe movements, which is why an examination matters more than an online quiz.
Crowding
Teeth that overlap or twist because the arch does not have enough room.
Spacing and gaps
Unwanted spaces between teeth, including gaps between the front teeth.
Overbite
Upper front teeth that extend too far vertically over the lower front teeth.
Underbite
Lower teeth that sit ahead of the upper teeth when the jaws close.
Crossbite
Upper teeth that close inside the lower teeth rather than outside them.
Open bite
Front teeth that do not meet when the back teeth are closed together.
Who Clear Aligners Suit Best
Aligner treatment asks something of you that braces do not: discipline. The trays only work while they are in, so the honest candidacy question is partly clinical and partly about daily habits.
Often a good fit
- Mild to moderate crowding, spacing, or bite correction
- Adults and older teens who want a discreet option
- Patients who can commit to 20 to 22 hours of daily wear
- Healthy teeth and gums with no active disease
- People whose work or social life makes visible brackets undesirable
- Patients who play contact sports or wind instruments, since trays come out
Needs evaluation first
- Severe rotations or teeth needing large vertical movement
- Very large gaps or significant skeletal jaw discrepancies
- Active tooth decay or untreated periodontal disease
- Patients unlikely to keep trays in consistently
- Children whose permanent teeth have not substantially erupted
Most items in the second column are either sequencing issues resolved before treatment or indications that fixed braces would give more predictable results. Only an in-person exam with imaging can determine which approach fits your case.
Two Things Patients Are Rarely Told Upfront
Clear aligner marketing tends to stop at “invisible and removable.” Two standard parts of treatment surprise patients when they come up mid-plan, so they are worth knowing before you start.
Attachments
Smooth plastic can push a tooth, but it struggles to rotate one or pull it downward. To solve that, small tooth-colored composite shapes called attachments or buttons are bonded to specific teeth. They give the aligner something to grab, converting simple pressure into the precise direction of force the plan requires.
They are matched to your enamel shade and are not obvious in conversation, but they are on your teeth for the duration of treatment. At the end they are removed and the enamel is polished smooth.
Interproximal reduction
When teeth are crowded, the room to straighten them has to come from somewhere. Interproximal reduction, or IPR, contours a very small amount of enamel from between specific teeth to create that space. The quantities are fractions of a millimeter and are mapped out during planning rather than decided on the spot.
IPR is a routine part of both aligner and braces treatment. It is worth asking whether your plan includes it so nothing feels like a surprise later.
Living With Clear Aligners
Aligners are easier to live with than brackets in most respects, but they introduce their own rules. The habits below protect both your treatment timeline and the enamel underneath the trays.
Wear them 20 to 22 hours a day
Removed time is paused progress. Track it if you tend to lose time at meals and snacks, because the shortfall accumulates quietly.
Only plain water goes in with trays
Coffee and tea can warp the plastic, and sugary or acidic drinks pool against enamel under the aligner where saliva cannot rinse them away.
Brush before reinserting
Sealing food debris and plaque against your teeth for hours is how patients develop decay during otherwise successful treatment.
Never clean aligners with hot water
Heat distorts the plastic. A warped tray stops tracking your teeth accurately and may need replacing, which delays treatment.
Rinse at every removal
A quick rinse prevents the film and odor that builds up when saliva dries on the plastic.
Store them in the case
Aligners wrapped in a napkin get thrown away, and pets are notoriously drawn to them. The case exists for a reason.
Keep your previous set
If a current aligner is lost or cracked, stepping back to the prior set holds your position until the office can advise you.
Expect a short adjustment period
Mild pressure with each new set and a temporary lisp in the first days are both normal and generally settle within a week or two.
Retention: The Part That Makes It Last
Finishing aligner treatment is not the end of the job. Teeth have a natural tendency to drift back toward where they started, a process called relapse, and the periodontal fibers that held them in their old positions take a long time to fully reorganize.
Retainers are what prevent that drift. Wear is typically full-time immediately after treatment and then reduced to nights on a schedule your provider sets. Retention is generally understood as a long-term, often lifelong commitment rather than a brief final phase, and stopping is the most common reason people end up considering retreatment years later.
Retainer options
Removable clear retainers
Similar in look and feel to your aligners, taken out for eating and cleaning, worn on a prescribed schedule.
Fixed bonded retainers
A thin wire bonded behind the front teeth that holds them continuously without depending on you remembering.
From Scan to Retainer, Step by Step
Clear aligner treatment is planned digitally from the start, which means the sequence is unusually predictable compared with many dental procedures.
Examination and records
An exam of the teeth, gums, and bite along with X-rays or a digital scan establishes whether aligners can achieve your goals and whether any decay or gum disease needs treating first.
Digital treatment plan
The scan becomes a three-dimensional model used to map every planned tooth movement in sequence, including where attachments are needed and whether interproximal reduction is part of the plan.
Aligner fabrication
Your series of trays is manufactured to that plan. Each tray represents one small step in the sequence rather than a generic shape.
Fitting and attachments
Attachments are bonded, the first aligner is fitted and checked, and you learn insertion, removal, cleaning, and the wear schedule.
Progressing through the series
Each set is worn for the interval your provider specifies, commonly one to two weeks, with mild pressure expected at each change.
Progress checks
Periodic visits confirm the teeth are tracking to plan. If they have fallen behind, adjustments or refinement trays get treatment back on course.
Completion and retention
Attachments are removed and polished off, and you transition to a retainer that holds the corrected positions long term.
Invisalign Questions, Answered
Most adult cases take 12 to 18 months. Teen cases vary. Dr. Peterson will give you a personalized estimate at your complimentary consultation.
Most patients experience mild pressure for a day or two when switching to a new set of aligners. This is normal and means the treatment is working.
Yes! You remove your aligners to eat and drink anything except water. This is one of the biggest advantages over traditional braces.
Invisalign works for most mild to moderate alignment cases. Dr. Peterson will evaluate your teeth and let you know if Invisalign or braces is the better fit.