The Impact of Aligner Therapy

The Roundtable video series is a forum for discussion and debate on key topics, trends, and techniques in dentistry. For each edition, Inside Dentistry's editor-in-chief, Robert C. Margeas, DDS, and a panel of experts examine a subject to help expand your knowledge and improve your practice. This month, our panel looks at the changing landscape of orthodontics with a focus on the impact of aligner therapy in the professional and consumer markets.

The conversation begins with a discussion about referring to specialists, and although all three of the panelists offer clear aligners to their patients as general practitioners, they still refer to orthodontists when a patient presents with a more complicated case.

Diana Batoon, DMD, believes that every office should be offering clear aligners to patients. When it comes to integration of the service, she notes that "there is a learning curve for the team and the front office regarding how to discuss treatment, but most consumers are educated about clear aligners and the benefits associated with the treatment." Robert Lowe, DDS, agrees that anyone who is doing restorative dentistry and esthetic treatments should consider offering some type of aligner therapy at his or her practice.

All three of the panelists recognize that consumerization is changing the landscape of clear aligners. Payam Ataii, DMD, MBA, suggests that direct-to-consumer marketing is great because it gets the conversation going but emphasizes that there needs to be guardrails in place to help aid the market and ensure that patients are going to have high quality work performed. Lowe concludes that "if these campaigns help patients to be cognizant of a problem and seek out the answer, then I think that is a benefit."

The discussion ends with the panelists agreeing that traditional dental models are changing every day and offering their thoughts about what the next big shift in the orthodontic industry may be.

Watch the full video on AEGIS TV at aegistv.com.

What You'll Learn

Drivers for incorporating clear aligner treatment into general practice

How aligners have affected the dentist/orthodontist relationship

Consumerism's effect on care delivery models and orthodontic partnerships

Meet the Panel

Payam Ataii, DMD, MBA, travels around the country lecturing on his research, trains doctors both nationally and internationally, and maintains a private practice in Laguna Hills, California.

Diana Batoon, DMD, is the president of the Center for Breathing and Sleep Wellness in Scottsdale, Arizona, and maintains a private practice in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Robert Lowe, DDS, is a diplomate of the American Board of Aesthetic Dentistry and maintains a private practice in Charlotte, North Carolina.