You have started on your clear aligner journey with Invisalign or Angel Aligner, and everything has been going well.
You have been wearing your aligners on for 22 hours each day as advised, you have been biting on chewies and none of your attachments have fallen off or damaged. The scheduled change of clear aligner trays have been on track. You feel great and you are on the path to better and straighter teeth.
Then comes the disheartening moment. A few sets in, you realize that the set that you are wearing feels different. It is a bit looser than other trays. You feel a larger than normal amount of saliva accessing your tray. When you bite or touch the impacted area with your tongue, your aligners move a little.
You wonder, why is my Invisalign or Angel Aligner not tracking? Is there something I can do about this?
Why Does This Happen?
Each aligner set shifts your teeth bit by bit. By the end of all your aligners, your teeth (hopefully) are in that beautiful position your dentist promised. Tracking means that your teeth are moving according to the planned position, which is one of the things I look out for when my patients come back for their reviews.
Off-tracking means that some of your teeth are not moving as your dentist or orthodontist has planned, which also means that your aligners may not be fitting as snugly as we would all like them to.
Why Is My Invisalign Not Tracking?
There are multiple reasons why teeth go off-track from your original treatment plan.
Most of the time, it stems from not wearing your aligners sufficiently to give your teeth the time to move into the right positions. You want to be wearing your aligners for at least 20-22 hours daily. It may be challenging on certain days to clock the minimum number of hours, but you can always make up for the hours by wearing it for an additional day.
It could also be that you are not biting on the chewies properly or sufficiently. Chewies help to ensure a better seating of your aligners on your teeth, to reduce the air gaps between your teeth and aligners, which contribute to good tracking of your teeth.
However, if you are wearing your aligners for the desired number of hours and also biting your chewies diligently, you may find that some teeth are just stubborn and refuse to move as you want them to. This sometimes happens and can be remedied with refinements.
What Should I Do If My Teeth Are Not Tracking?
The first thing you should do is to ensure that you are clocking the recommended 20-22 hours of wear time every day. If you are not, consider extending the number of days you wear each set before changing to the next set of aligners.
Bite your chewies more frequently. This will help to make sure that your aligners are seated as snugly as possible!
Do not blindly move on to the next set, just because you want to get through all your sets. Just because you have worn all the sets and they feel loose and comfortable, does not mean that your teeth are actually moving in the way they were supposed to. If at the end of all the sets, your teeth still are not where they are supposed to be, your dentist or orthodontist is likely to order additional sets for you (refinements). Just remember, straightening your teeth with clear aligners is not a race to the end!
Make sure that each set is worn for an adequate amount of time, to make sure that the tooth movement has actually taken place and is relatively stable, before you move on to the next set.
If you are still experiencing problems with your aligners, you should definitely reach out to your dentist or orthodontist to ask them about it! Do not be shy to voice any concern you have! Your dentist or orthodontist are there to help you with any concerns or enquiries you may have. Nothing is too small or silly.
What Happens If One Tooth Is Not Tracking In Invisalign?
Some teeth are NOTORIOUS for off-tracking.
The lateral incisors(next to your two front teeth) are a huge culprit a lot of the time. This is because it’s a relatively small tooth (as compared to the two front teeth), so it can be quite challenging for the aligners to have a good grip on the tooth in order to move it well.
But there is nothing to worry, you are not the only ones with lateral incisors. Many people wearing aligners face similar problems, and your dentist or orthodontist will have ways to guide these stubborn teeth into the correct position.
This may involve adjuncts such as more attachments, or even buttons and rubber bands involved. But at the end of the day, your dentist or orthodontist will be able to troubleshoot this and help you move your teeth into the correction position! It might just take a little bit more time and patience!
How can I improve my Invisalign tracking?
The best way to make sure that your teeth track well is to clock the recommended wear time of 20-22 hours a day.
Bite your chewies well and regularly. I like to tell my patients that more is better than less – don’t be afraid to keep biting on them! They do not cause any harm to your teeth.
Of course this should go without saying – wear your sets in chronological order. Do not skip sets unless you were instructed to do so by your dentist or orthodontist!
Your teeth might not be tracking as planned but this is nothing to worry about!
When your teeth are not tracking, you might be worried that your treatment is not turning out the way it is supposed to be. Non-tracking teeth are not a big cause for concern if you have been dutifully wearing your clear aligners for the minimum duration, biting on your chewies to reduce the gaps between your teeth and the aligners and following up with your dentist or orthodontist. Your dentist or orthodontist will be able to help you with stubborn teeth that are not moving according to the treatment plan.
Dr Amanda Koh
https://kohedental.comDr Amanda Koh is the Founder and Managing Director of kohe™ Dental. She is also known as The Invisalign Dentist.She has a special interest in helping patients achieve their ideal smile outcomes with clear aligners like Invisalign and Angel Aligner and braces.