What is Sure Smile Technology?

Suresmile is a computerized way of placing and adjusting braces.  It is not comparable to or a replacement for Invisalign, which uses removeable clear plastic trays rather than braces.  An optical scan of the patient's teeth is done and then translated into a computerized image of the teeth and bite.  This image is used to fabricate special trays to place the braces in the best position.  The computerized image is also used to fabricate wires which are designed to move the teeth in an efficient manner.  Both the braces and the wires are essentially the same as traditional orthodontic braces and wires.  The main difference is that the computer, rather than the orthodontist, bends the wires.  The Suresmile company claims that their technology allows cases to be finished more quickly and with fewer appointments.  I am not aware of impartial peer-reviewed research which backs up this claim, but in the final analysis the orthodontist's careful attention to treatment planning and execution is the secret sauce that assures an optimum result with whatever technology is employed to move the teeth. 

Sure Smile allows the orthodontist to plan tooth movement utilizing a digital model of your teeth and then create arch-wires customized for you. These wires move your teeth efficiently to the desired position. Alternatively, the orthodontist bends the wire by hand to move teeth. Either way works well in the hands of a good orthodontist...however, being efficient allows treatment to finish more quickly. A common misconception is the we are moving the teeth "faster"...this is not the case, we are simply being more efficient and so the overall treatment time is less (which means fewer office visits also). My average treatment time before using Sure Smile was 21 months and it is now 16 months.

The SureSmile concept is simple and yet powerful. A set of digital models of the teeth is created (either by an optical scanner or a 3D xray) and the orthodontist moves the virtual teeth to their ideal positions on a computer screen (CAD - Computer Aided Design). A wire bending machine or "robot" connected to the computer then fabricates a custom wire that will move the teeth to the exact locations dictated by the orthodontist, accurate to 1/10 mm (CAM - Compiter Aided Manufacturing). The process shaves 40% off of treatment time, gives a better result, and does so with less pain.