When Will My Elgin Dentist Get My Invisalign Aligners?

Will it take an Elgindentist longer to get Invisalign aligners than it would for one in Chicago?That probably sounds like a weird question, given how close the two cities are,but the reason why I’m asking is because I wanted to get a start on mytreatment right away. My dentist in Elgin quoted me a six-week wait, but myfriend who goes to an office in Chicago was told four weeks or less. When Iquestioned my office, they said “it’s always six weeks.” Is there something oddabout transit or bigger cities getting preferential treatment or is my office justbehaving strangely? I guess neither is good. I’m just confused. If it does takelonger for things to be made and shipped for some reason, will this impact mytreatment later and slow me down even more?

Thanks,

Sammi

Dear Sammi,

It sounds like you’re following the general process; thatthe Invisalign factory gets your models and pictures,fabricates the aligners, and then ships them to your dentist in Elgin. Thereshouldn’t be a difference in timing based on the cities. It could be that youroffice has had bad experiences with cases showing up late or getting delayed intransit, so perhaps they delay booking the delivery appointment longer thanothers. Or, it could be that the person was misinformed, they were booked, the dentistwould be on vacation, or something similar. This is a good question you’d wantto ask them directly. If a staff member doesn’t know, the office manager or doctorwill.

As far as the delay impacting things as you progress in treatmentgoes, it should not. When the aligners are fabricated, they’re done all at oncein a big batch. Your dental office may not give them to you in one lump.Oftentimes, they’ll only give out a couple at a time to ensure you follow upwith your check-ups and to make sure that the aligners remain in good conditionuntil you’re ready to use them. The only reason it might become an issue lateron is if your treatment changes or you lose an aligner. With lost aligners,people can usually just move to the next set, so a replacement isn’t necessary,but it depends on how long you wear it before it’s lost. Because treatment ismapped out by a computer, it’s pretty rare to have anything change while you’reworking through the aligners. In other words, chances are your office will havethem all from the start, so there’s no waiting for shipments at all.

This blog is sponsored by Elgin Invisalign dentist, Dr.Steve Sirin.