In this edition of Friday Focus, Dr. O El-Hillal from iSmiles Orthodontics, your Irvine Orthodontist, discusses some of the sneaky tricks orthodontists can use to hide fees in braces treatment contracts. “Only $99 DOWN to start treatment” sounds like a great deal, but be warned that lower costs up front do not always equate to lower costs for total treatment. In this example, you may be signing up for an […]

In this edition of the Friday Focus, Dr. O El-Hillal from iSmiles Orthodontics, your Irvine Orthodontist, discusses the hidden fees that can be buried in “Staged Braces Treatment Contracts. . .and why they should be avoided. There’s no doubt, unless you know up front what to look for, contracts can be confusing. Orthodontic practices have many options when it comes to financial contracts for a treatment plan. Some offices take […]

In this edition of the Friday Focus, Dr. O El-Hillal from iSmiles Orthodontics, your Irvine Orthodontist, discusses braces treatment contracts, how they are developed and what to look out for. iSmiles Orthodontics always welcomes potential patients who set up an appointment for a second or third opinion of a recommended treatment plan. With a copy of a Braces Treatment Contract from another orthodontic practice in hand, they always have a […]

Welcome to Friday Focus. I’m Doctor “O” and today I wanted to let you know about a new, state of the art, impression system we’re going to be adding to our office this year – digital impressions. When impressions of the teeth and mouth were needed in the past to design removable aligners or retainers, orthodontists had no choice but to create molds using hard trays, filled with a goopy, […]

Welcome to Friday Focus with Doctor “O”! This week’s orthodontic related question is “Can you eat popsicles while wearing braces?” The answer, which is “Yes”, may come as a surprise to you. While it makes sense that hard foods can break braces, crack your teeth, erode enamel and weaken the overall structure of teeth, this isn’t the case with popsicles because they aren’t as hard as other snack options. You […]

Have you been considering getting braces for yourself or a loved one? Here’s something you should think about if you have a Flexible Spending Account (FSA). As we wind down the year and head into the holiday season, a lot of important year end considerations end up being overlooked, including FSAs. If you have an FSA, don’t forget that they can expire, typically at the end of the year. The […]

Orthodontic patients usually have a lot of questions. “Do braces hurt?” is one we get asked a lot. Well, you’ll be happy to know that after braces are placed, most patients only experience mild teeth or gum soreness. The soreness typically lasts about one week and is rarely difficult to deal with. During treatment, some patients find the soreness associated with braces to be uncomfortable, but manageable. When it does […]

Welcome to the Friday Focus. My name is Doctor “O” from iSmiles Orthodontics, Your Irvine Orthodontist and today I’d like to focus on a question we often receive from patients who have recently started treatment. The question is, “Why do orthodontic brackets break?” Generally, we find that broken brackets occur after a patient has eaten something they shouldn’t have eaten – hard, chewy or sticky foods. While it’s inconvenient for […]