Thank you for your question. Clincheck is a proprietary software of Invisalign, it is a 3D visual interface that allows your doctor to assess the planned teeth movement, make adjustments to the teeth position as well as add or change the attachments to be bonded on the tooth. In Invisalign treatment, a scan/impression is taken of your original teeth position. This is then translated to a virtual 3D model where the technicians will move the teeth into the desired position based on your dentist/orthodontist's treatment plan.
Your doctor will then assess the Clincheck software to evaluate the technicians' work followed by making adjustments as needed. In some instances, your doctor may even change their treatment plan after evaluating the Clincheck or virtual setup.
Clincheck allows your doctor to customise your treatment based on your presenting needs. The software does have sophisticated algorithms that automatically effect certain features (e.g optimised attachments will be activated if a tooth requires a lot of rotation movement). However, those features are not set in stone and your doctor is able to decide if these features are needed. In my opinion, the Clincheck software is easy to use, allows more control as I am able to make adjustments and have greater ease of communication with the technician in charge of the case.
However, there still remains a gap between the virtual planned movement and the actual outcome. In the study by Krieger et al, there remains a discrepancy between the Clincheck planned movement compared to the final tooth position. The article abstract can be found here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22890691
Hence it is with this knowledge in mind, that I often plan some overcorrection to difficult tooth movement in order to achieve my desired goal for the patient.
Hope this helps.
All the best,
Dr Priscilla Lu
Orthodontist
