Aligner Treatment Planning

Automated Model Design for Aligners

SureSmile aligner design is ideal for cases requiring moderate tooth movement. Designed to your treatment plan, a series of aligners or 3D prints of your staged models can be ordered from Dentsply Sirona or printed by a local laboratory of your choice.

SureSmile's aligner treatment features allow you to

create a treatment simulation or setup as the target for aligner therapy
generate and adjust a series of staged 3D models
have Dentsply Sirona print aligners or staged models and ship to your practice
export the 3D models as .STL formatted files to send to your lab

SureSmile accommodates several aligner treatment approaches:

Aligner only treatment - usually for patients with simple corrections or for relapsed patients.
Combination treatment - treat patients with a combination of fixed and removable appliances.
Finishing in aligners - augment your fixed appliance treatment by making minor finishing corrections in aligners as you move the teeth into position for the final retainer.

Overview of Process

Here is a quick overview of the process for designing aligners in SureSmile.

1. Capture Model with Gingiva

When the patient is ready for aligner therapy, capture a model with gingiva to provide your lab with an intact physical model that can be used for appliance production. This may be a diagnostic, therapeutic or final model. The scan technologies that can provide gingiva for use by SureSmile are:

OraScanner
Scan from a 3rd party scanner (such as CEREC Omnicam, iTero, TRIOS)
CBCT scan of a plaster model (Diagnostic or Final only). This scan type is the least accurate and is not recommended.

2. Create a Treatment Simulation or Setup

If you captured a diagnostic or final model, the next step is to create a simulation of your treatment target for aligner therapy. If you captured a therapeutic model as part of an aligner case, order a setup from the Digital Lab. This simulation or setup represents the target, or desired treatment outcome of the aligner treatment.

3. Create Staged Models yourself (DIY) or have Dentsply Sirona Digital Lab techs create your staged models (full-service)

Use SureSmile's automated model design tools to create a series of staged models that start with the reference model captured in step 1 above -- a diagnostic, final or therapeutic model -- and finish with the treatment simulation or setup you created in step 2. You can control the number of stages used, you can limit or exclude specific movements, and designate specific teeth as fixed.

4. Order aligners, printed models or export STL files for your Lab

After all of the staged models are generated for aligner therapy, order aligners, 3D printed models or export staged models to create 3D files to send to your lab for appliance production.

Aligner Therapy Options

SureSmile allows you to offer the following combinations of aligner therapy:

Full treatment in aligners only

None Case Type (DIY) - If the patient will be treated with aligners only and you do not need assistance from our Digital Lab, select None for your case type and just create a simulation based on a diagnostic model. Use this simulation as your target, create the staged model sequence and then export the 3D data files for fabricating your aligner trays. No fee is charged for this. (Your only cost is the original fee for the diagnostic model.) For more information, go to Aligner Therapy Treatment Steps - (none) case type.

Aligner Case Type- Use this case type for:

- patients who will receive aligners based on SureSmile staged models, but who will not be bonded nor receive wires.
- patients who will receive aligners based on SureSmile staged models after they have completed or are near completion of SureSmile fixed appliance treatment.

Select the Aligner case type to benefit from the expertise of our Digital Lab technicians in setting up your target for aligner therapy, and then generating and adjusting your series of staged models. Services included with this product bundle:

- 1 unbonded therapeutic model. Capture this scan at a patient appointment using an optical scan technology that can capture gingiva (such as CEREC Omnicam, iOC™ Scanner/iTero®, 3Shape TRIOS®, CS 3500, or 3M True Definition scanners.)
- 1 setup created by the Digital Lab technicians per your instructions (includes any modifications as needed)
- printed aligners
- 3D prints of staged models
- STL exports of staged models
- Aligner refinements
- Attachments may be included per the Doctor's instructions.
- Access to your Digital Lab technician to discuss your setup or staged models

For more information, go to Aligner Therapy Treatment Steps - Aligner Case

Combination treatment approach

Use a Standard Case bundle If the patient will be treated with aligners before or after SureSmile treatment with custom archwires. To deliver a combination treatment approach, select a Standard Case bundle. See Combination Therapy for more information.

Additional products available a la carte

When a product is not included in a case type, it is considered an "a la carte" product and a separate fee is charged. Products that can be ordered "a la carte" include:

a la carte Product	Use
Diagnostic model	diagnostic purposes develop different simulations aligner design IDB tray design marketing purposes
Additional therapeutic model based on CBCT data	add roots and bone to a therapeutic model from surface scan
Additional therapeutic model based on a surface scan	as basis of new setup if teeth are not moving as planned best possible diagnostic model for aligner therapy (unbonded therapeutic model) best possible diagnostic model for study/analysis (unbonded therapeutic model) post-surgical planning mixed treatment (aligner therapy on one arch and brackets on opposing arch)
Premium model	higher accuracy of crown data from an optical scan combined with the roots and bone from a CBCT scan tooth crowns modeled to highest standards
Additional setup	tooth or anatomy updates teeth are not moving as planned
Final model	quality grading comparison purposes record keeping.
Lingual retainers	post-treatment alignment maintenance

Aligner Pricing Options

Aligners produced in conjunction with full-service aligner cases are offered with two different pricing options:

Select (per piece)
Complete (per patient)

When ordering a Full-Service Aligner case, you choose the Select or Complete appliance pricing option:

after the customer approves the model, setup and staging, but
before ordering aligners

Here is a table that shows the differences between the Select and Complete pricing options. Please note that any prices shown vary from region to region and are subject to change.

	Select	Complete
Aligners	$30 each*	Unlimited for 3 years
Refinements (Aligner Cases Only)	$110 each*	Unlimited for 3 years
Replacement Aligners	$30 each*	Unlimited for 3 years

* US dollars shown for illustrative purposes only. Please contact your Clinical Implementation Specialist (CIS) for pricing details.

Here is some additional information about each pricing option.

Select Pricing Option

Customers will continue to have the choice to purchase 3D printed models (even for stages previously purchased as aligners) and to export staged models when ordering this package.
This option includes a therapeutic model, a setup and staging created by the Digital Lab (with review and approval by the customer).
Aligners are available for purchase based on the Digital Lab-designed and doctor-approved staging in any quantity (up to the number of planned stages) and are priced on a per-aligner basis.
The minimum order size is one stage (a single aligner or a pair of aligners).
It is not possible to combine SureSmile wires with this offering for concurrent mixed treatment (i.e. one arch treated with aligners, one arch treated with archwires) .

Complete Pricing Option

This option offers a single fixed price for a particular patient. It includes an unlimited number of refinements, in addition to the associated aligner appliances needed for aligner therapy, all to be ordered within a 3-year period.
The models, setups and stages are created by the Digital Lab, with review and approval by the customer.
Once approved, the customer can order aligners based on the planned treatment.
The 3-year period begins with the submission of the first order for a model.