Thank you for your question, after reading this several things come to mind. The first thing that comes to mind and most likely the answer to your problem is that a bite adjustment was needed after your orthodontic treatment was completed. The teeth were moved into the proper position but due to the way the teeth are hitting it causes them to move throughout the day because they want to find a more comfortable position. Hopefully a simple bite adjustment can fix this problem for you. Another possibility which is a little more complex could be that during the night the muscles relax and the joints meet properly meaning the joint seats properly where the condyle fits into the fossa. And then throughout the day the joint moves to its acquired position that most of us have and then the teeth don’t meet up properly. We would need to determine if the teeth were moving or if the jaw was moving. I think the fact that the tray is tight when you go to put it in at night means that the teeth are indeed moving most likely due to a bite issue. Lastly, sometimes patients will have ligaments that want to rebound or pull the teeth back to their original position as a memory of sorts, and this can be handled by a long-term wear of the tray or surgically cutting the ligaments to hopefully prevent from pulling the teeth back into original location.

Please let us know if you have any further questions and know we'd be happy to examine you in person.

Best,
Dr. Michael Moossy

After Invisalign or any kind of orthodontics, it’s natural for your teeth to try to shift back to their previous position. In some people, this happens very slowly, so wearing retainers nightly is enough to keep the teeth where they are. In other people, the teeth will shift very quickly, even over the course of a single day. It sounds like you may fall in this category. It’s good news that you can still put your retainers in each night, even if they are tight. Whether or not you need Invisalign again is hard to say without seeing the position of the teeth, but it sounds like you may at least need a different kind of retainer. I recommend seeing a dentist to assess your options. Until then, you may want to wear your retainers during the night and the day (any time you aren’t eating), just as you did during Invisalign. This will help minimize any further shifting until you can see your dentist. Hope this helps!

Best,
Eric S. Broberg, DDS