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SorrisoOrtho – The Orthodontic App by Dr. Clark D. Colville

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The iTunes Store and the app world have become synonymous with the iPhone from the time it first appeared on the market a few years ago. What first seemed like nothing more than a hand-held gaming device quickly became the rage among techies as the iPhone app developers unleashed a plethora of apps designed to touch almost every facet of our lives. It was only a matter of time before the orthodontic community took notice and started looking for ways to engage our patients in the orthodontic experience. There are many apps that contort facial photos and make funny smiles, but none are specifically designed for the orthodontic experience… until now.

SorrisoOrtho is the first app created for the iPhone and iPad with the sole objective to enhance the orthodontic experience (Fig. 1). This app is distinctive by design. The signature feature of this app is the ability to customize it for each orthodontic office. This personalization allows the orthodontist to virally market his or her practice with the help of patients and raise the level of communication between the orthodontist and his or her referral base of dentists and specialists.

SorrisoOrtho contains specific functions for each of the three principles in the orthodontic experience – the patient, the parent and the orthodontist (Fig. 2). Each app user will find specific features created specifically for his or her unique orthodontic experience – be it braces, clear aligners or regular observation visits. Let’s look a little closer from the perspective of the app user.

The Patient and Parent
Orthodontic patients have specific interests and needs during the course of their life-changing smile transformation. How would an iPhone app benefit them? For teens, the orthodontic experience is a big part of their lives, which they share regularly with their friends by texting, e-mailing and posting on social media sites. Within the app, the patients will be able to share their smile-creating experience through a feature called Time Lapse Smile (Fig. 3). The patients will be able to take photos of their smile, either up close of the teeth only or a smiling facial view that will be stored in the phone in chronological order and then replayed in a video at the touch of a button. The video can be shared with family and friends to keep everyone up-to-date on their orthodontic experience. The patients can also take a photo or video at any time and post to their Facebook or send to a list of friends to share their new colors, treatment progress and the great final smile the moment braces are removed (Fig. 4). The video function can also be used to record and store specific instructions, such as an example of turning the expander or attaching elastics, for review at a later date if needed. The Time Lapse Smile can be accessed from the parents’ screen as well, allowing them to track the progress of the smile under construction, and letting them share with friends and family in the same manner.

The most common question in every orthodontic office is “When do the braces come off?” Well, ask no more. The app contains a Countdown Timer, to the second, that can keep the patients informed of their all-important end date. In addition, there is a visual horizontal bar graph that transitions from red to green, left to right, and tracks treatment progress (Fig. 5). A similar feature is in place for the patients wearing clear aligners. The app will track aligner progress from start to finish, with alerts that remind the patients to change their aligners in order to keep the treatment on course. The aligner feature can be customized to any aligner changing schedule from one day to 60 days, making it a great tool for every patient using clear aligners (Fig. 6). Patient Reminders can be set on the SorrisoOrtho app to send scheduled alerts to the iPhone. Some of the reminders include: turn the expander, brush your teeth, wear your retainer, schedule a cleaning appointment, check wisdom teeth, wear your elastics and orthodontic recall. For the parents, this takes the place of constantly reminding their child to cooperate with treatment instructions. The teenagers’ lifeline now becomes their “cooperation counselor.” This will also serve the parents as a way to be reminded about specific appointments that are not already scheduled, but need to be made upon receiving the alert, like scheduling a cleaning appointment with their hygienist.

An Appointment feature integrates with the iPhone calendar by reminding them, via alerts, to keep their scheduled appointments with their dentist and orthodontist. A parent with multiple children in different phases of treatment, from observation to Phase I to Phase II, can keep track of each child separately in the app by creating a profile for each child. Each child will have full functionality within the app, separate from the functions for a second or third child. This keeps all the photos, videos and appointments for each child in their respective directory within the app.

The Orthodontist
The SorrisoOrtho app has the ability to improve and replace existing communication systems in the typical orthodontic office. Communication with the patient, parent and the patient’s dentist/specialist is a critical component of successful orthodontic treatment. The SorrisoOrtho app improves the communication process by leaps and bounds. The orthodontic user functions are specifically tailored to make communication as easy as pushing a few buttons (Fig. 7). The Referrals feature allows the orthodontist to quickly create a photo, video, voicemail or e-mail message at the chair using an office iPad2/iPhone/iTouch to immediately send the message to all involved parties (Figs. 8&9). When mom, dad or the dentist needs to know the treatment status, they can be immediately updated before the patient leaves the chair. The staff can convert lost minutes waiting for the doctor into improving communication time with parents and referrals. Referrals to another specialist can be made in a matter of seconds. A request for the dentist to call mom and schedule a hygiene appointment can be sent immediately, rather than waiting until the end of the day, and without switching in and out of different programs on the practice management software.

The Blast feature allows orthodontists to send messages to a group of the practice’s referral doctors. This could be something as simple as a holiday greeting or meeting notices. This can be an effective marketing tool to announce office promotions or a notice of change in office hours due to CE or weather-related incidents. The goal is to increase communication with the referral offices in a manner that does not clutter their offices with unnecessary hard copies. Any e-mail sent from the app will be copied to the orthodontists’ general e-mail and can be sorted and stored electronically by the front office staff.

SorrisoOrtho can be downloaded from the iTunes App Store as a stand-alone app for $1.99. However, customization to orthodontists’ particular offices, including their logo and either a partial or complete listing of referral offices within the app, will require a premium subscription service. The subscription service unlocks the full capability of SorrisoOrtho and allows complete utilization of the Referral and Blast communication features. The fully functional version also has patient branding. Once an orthodontist is registered with SorrisoOrtho, and has uploaded the required data, the viral marketing potential of the app is realized. The initial setup guides the patient and parent to select their orthodontist and dentist (Figs. 10-12). Once selected, each time the patients use their iPhone to record a picture within the app, a white-label will be included on the bottom of each photo, clearly identifying the orthodontic office. When the photo is shared through e-mail, MMS or social media sites the photo will be labeled with the orthodontist’s name. Imagine, a patient sends an update photo to his or her Facebook site and has “Smile by Dr. Your Name” across the bottom. The subscription service transforms SorrisoOrtho into a unique app that has the look and feel that it was developed exclusively for your office. To learn more about SorrisoOrtho, visit the Web site at www.sorrisoortho.com.
Author Bio
Dr. Clark Colville is a 1993 graduate from the orthodontic program of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and maintains a private practice in Seguin, Texas. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor in the same program today. Dr. Colville is a Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics and holds leadership positions in the American Association of Orthodontists (Council on Membership, Ethics, and Judicial Concerns) and the Southwestern Society of Orthodontists. Dr. Colville has worked with Align Technology since 1998 doing clinical trials, has consulted with the Clinical Advisory Board, and speaks frequently throughout the US on Invisalign branded clear aligner treatment.
Orthotown Magazine
September 2025
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