iTero Scanning and Orthodontic Technology in Northbrook, IL

We use an iTero digital scanner, digital treatment planning, diode laser therapy and a full range of orthodontic appliances at Janzen & Chwa Orthodontics. The point of all of it is the same: a more accurate plan, a more comfortable visit, and fewer surprises between the start of treatment and the end of it.

Technology pages tend to read like equipment inventories. This one tries to answer the only question that matters to a patient, which is what any of it changes about your treatment. In some cases the answer is comfort. In others it is precision, or time, or the ability to show you where a case is heading before you commit to it.

Quicker Results for Your Smile

Improve Comfort at Every Step

Less Time Spent in the Office

Accurate and Customized Alignment

Digital 3D Scanning Instead of Impressions

Records here are captured with the iTero scanner rather than with impression trays.

If you had braces twenty years ago, you remember the alternative: a tray of putty pressed against the roof of your mouth for two minutes while you tried not to gag. Children hated it, adults tolerated it, and the results were inconsistent enough that retakes were routine.

A digital scan is a small wand passed over the teeth. It takes a few minutes, there is nothing to swallow, you can pause and breathe whenever you want, and the result appears on a screen immediately. If a section needs re-capturing we do it on the spot rather than at a second appointment.

The accuracy matters as much as the comfort. Appliances and clear aligners are manufactured from these scans, and a more faithful starting model produces better-fitting appliances and fewer mid-treatment adjustments.

Digital Treatment Planning and Seeing the Result First

The scan is not only a record. It is the basis for planning the whole case.

We map tooth movement digitally, which lets us test an approach before committing to it and shows you a simulation of your projected result at the planning stage rather than describing it. For aligner cases the plan is built tray by tray, so the sequence of movements is designed in advance instead of adjusted as it goes.

This is the part that separates supervised orthodontic treatment from a mail-order aligner service. A plan is a prediction, and predictions need someone qualified to check them against what is actually happening in your mouth every few weeks.

Diode Laser Therapy

A diode laser lets us reshape small amounts of gum tissue precisely and with very little discomfort.

In orthodontics it is used for a handful of specific jobs: exposing a tooth that has not fully erupted so a bracket can be placed, evening out a gum line where tissue has grown over during treatment, and easing irritation around brackets. The procedure is minimally invasive, healing is quick, and most patients need nothing stronger than an over-the-counter pain reliever afterwards, if anything.

Airway and Bite Evaluation

Our records include an assessment that goes beyond how the teeth line up.

Airway evaluation. Jaw position and airway are related, and a narrow upper jaw or a retruded lower jaw can affect how easily a child breathes, particularly at night. We look for the signs during evaluation and, where something warrants it, refer or coordinate with the appropriate physician. This is an evaluation, not a treatment we provide on our own.

Jaw joint and bite function. Where a patient reports jaw discomfort, clicking or difficulty opening, we evaluate the bite’s contribution to it and coordinate care with your dentist or a specialist when the case needs more than orthodontics can offer. Cases involving skeletal jaw position may involve an oral and maxillofacial surgeon, described on our surgical orthodontics page.

Appliances Matched to the Case

Technology also means choosing the right appliance rather than the familiar one. Expanders, functional appliances such as the Herbst and Twin Block, and temporary anchorage devices each solve a particular problem, and several of them can achieve results that once required extractions or surgery. Our orthodontic appliances page covers the full range and what each one does.

Frequently Asked Questions About Our Technology

A few minutes for a full scan of both arches, and you can stop for a break at any point. Most patients are surprised how quick and undramatic it is compared with putty impressions.

The main limits are practical. A scan needs reasonably clear access to the teeth, so heavy build-up or an uncooperative patient can slow it down, and no scan replaces the clinical exam and X-rays that go with it. For patients who gag easily, it is a substantial improvement over the alternative.

Your scan is part of the orthodontic records included in your treatment fee here, so it is not billed as a separate item. What your dental plan contributes to the overall fee is covered on our payment plans page.

Yes. We show you the digital simulation of the projected outcome during treatment planning, before you commit to anything.

See the Technology at a Complimentary Consultation

The easiest way to understand any of this is to sit in the chair and watch the scan appear on the screen. The first visit is free, no referral is needed, and you will leave with a diagnosis and a written estimate. Call or text (847) 272-0600 or request an appointment online.