Efficiency of Er:YAG utilization in accelerating deep bite orthodontic treatment.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

The long duration of orthodontic treatment is a major patients' concern. A noninvasive method of accelerating tooth movement in a physiological manner is needed. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effects of Er:YAG laser application during orthodontic treatment of deep bite and to evaluate its analgesic effect during that movement.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A prospective randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) was performed on 30 patients with deep bite. Sample was divided into two groups: (A), 15 patients (orthodontic treatment-control group) and (B), 15 patients (orthodontic treatment and Er:YAG Laser - laser group). The tooth movement was evaluated as the primary outcome variable by measuring angular and linear changes on three progress lateral cephalometeric radiographs (T1, T2 and T3); Lateral cephalograms were taken before treatment (T1), immediately after finishing the stage of leveling and alignment (T2) and after completion of the intrusion stage (T3).Laser parameters were 400 mJ/10 Hz/4 W and 400 mJ/15 Hz/6 W, depending on the handpiece used. The levels of pain and discomfort were evaluated and ranked according to a visual analog scale. Paired t-tests or Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-rank tests were used to detect significant differences.

RESULTS

The main findings of the treatment were (1) significant positive difference in the rates of tooth intrusion movement on the experimental group compared with the control group at the baseline to T2 and T3 interval and the tooth movement rate was approximately 3 times faster in the experimental group. (2) The pain score in the experimental group was significantly lower compared with the control group on day 3 as on day 7.

CONCLUSION

The application of Er:YAG laser is an effective mean to speed orthodontic tooth movement with a significant reduction in pain and discomfort after application.