ortho the international C.E. magazine of orthodontics

10 I I C.E. article_ Combination Technique final closure of residual spaces. _Summary Historically, Dr. Maxwell Fogel and Dr. Jack Magill believed that the unification of the Begg light-wire and the Tweed edgewise philosophies produced an ideal milieu for (a) universal action and controlled toothmovementinalldirections;(b)automatic,self- acting appliances, with a long span of action, a few adjustment periods; and (c) simple, uniform design, painlessandcompatiblewiththetissuessurrounding the teeth. According to Drs. Fogel and Magill (1972), an- chorage was the focal point in successful treatment; gentle, free tipping movements of the canines in a distal direction into the extraction spaces imposed lessstressontheanchorunitsthandidbodilydistalof the solidly embedded teeth. For many years, tipping movements for anchorage preservation was looked upon with great skepticism. The widely spaced twin edgewise bracket, as suggested by Dr. Brainerd Swain in 1949, was used to solve the problem of paralleling roots when clos- ing extraction spaces. As Dr. Cecil Steiner succinctly stated:“Asinglearchwireofuniformstandarddesign and size cannot serve with equal efficiency for the variouspurposesnecessary,”(Fogel&Magill,1972).It followsthatdifferenttypesofapplianceunitsrequire appropriateconstructionanddesignsothatavariety ofwiresizesmaybeusedforproficientandcontrolled performanceseffectinganassortmentofsignificant assignments. Drs.FogelandMagillcombinedthetwinedgewise bracket with a vertically placed insert pin to produce a natural union as a receptacle for both pliable light- wires and rectangular wires simultaneously. The CombinationTechnique’ssingleappliancereceptacle offered the ability to achieve the desired treatment proceduresandobjectives.Theirgoalwastoproduce a technique that would correct average as well as severe malocclusions with better results in less time and with greater ease. This original Combination Technique incorpo- rated a system for moving teeth whereby the teeth remained in place as a result of the equilibrium that existed among the oral musculature including the lips, tongue and the muscles of mastication. Axial correction of root angulations was no longer a problem. Positioning the mandibular incisors over the basal bone enhanced anchorage potentialities and helped to achieve a more functional and stable occlusion. Any force that disrupted this equilibrium createdanenvironmentfortheteethtomove.When a very light resilient wire is ligated into a crowded dentition,thewireattemptsreturningtotheoriginal ortho2_2012 Fig. 9a Fig. 9b Fig. 11a Fig. 11b Fig. 11c Fig. 10a Fig. 10b Fig. 10c Fig. 9c