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19 Ortho Tribune Asia Pacific Edition | 1+2/2017 ORTHO NEWS “We need to update our knowledge on the various aligner systems available” An interview with Dr Graham Gardner, President of the European Aligner Society By Brendan Day, DTI Since it was commercially intro- duced in 1999, aligner therapy has grown and developed substantially as an orthodontic treatment modal- ity. Dr Graham Gardner is the first President of the European Aligner Society (EAS), an organisation dedi- cated to increasing education and research in aligner therapy. The in- augural EAS AlignerLab workshop will be held in Vienna in Austria on 18 February and aims to provide a hands-on learning experience for dental professionals interested in updating their knowledge of aligner treatment. Dental Tribune inter- viewed Gardner about the role of aligners in orthodontics and what the event organisers have in store. Dental Tribune: What benefits do aligners offer over fixed orthodon- tic appliances, and how have these developed since aligners were first introduced? Dr Gardner: In my opinion, the advantages of aligner therapy for the patient are: 1) They are more comfortable than fixed appliances. 2) They are more aesthetic, and therefore less noticeable, com- pared with fixed appliances. This is especially important for some- one seeking orthodontic treat- ment because he or she is al- ready concerned and self-con- scious about his or her teeth, as the last thing such a patient would then want is to draw at- tention to his or her teeth with fixed appliances. 3) Improved maintenance of oral hygiene and no dietary restric- tions, as the aligners are re- moved for eating. The advantages of aligner ther- apy for the orthodontist are: 1) Improved treatment planning capabilities owing to the 3-D treatment software. Virtual treatment planning allows one to evaluate different treatment options that, crucially, can be more clearly discussed with the patient owing to the virtual pres- entation process. In my opinion, this allows the patient to make a more informed decision on the treatment. 2) Broken brackets and emergen- cies are things of the past. Additionally, a benefit shared by both patient and clinician is that adjustment appointments are often quicker and certainly more comfortable for the patient com- pared with fixed appliances. What have the main impediments been to the adoption of aligners by dental professionals? I think that, initially, aligners were basic and our knowledge on how to move teeth with plastic was limited. Hence, in the earlier years, only minor tooth movement could be predictably treated with align- ers, and this limited their use and then restricted the number of practitioners prepared to use aligners. Combined with the fact that the practitioner now had to learn new software programmes and how to plan treatment on a computer—a vastly different skill to having the physical study model in one’s hands and brackets on teeth—one can see why the initial take-up was perhaps less than would have been expected. The first EAS AlignerLab is set to take place in Vienna in February. What prompted the EAS to hold this workshop, and what can partici- pants expect to gain from it? We are excited about the first AlignerLab. With the explosion in the 3-D treatment planning and manufacturing processes now available, we at the EAS believe that not only do we need to update our knowledge on the various aligner systems available, we also need to understand the associated hardware, such as scanners, com- puters and 3-D printers, and soft- ware that is necessary to optimise the aligner system and improve treatment results. It is therefore our objective to bring these two areas together at one event with the AlignerLab. This will allow attendees an opportunity to listen to world- famous clinicians on different systems, to compare these differ- ent aligner systems and to gain hands-on experience with the dif- ferent equipment associated with these systems. We think it is a unique way to update our knowledge on aligner therapy, with a bonus opportunity to forge links with our colleagues across Europe. Is the AlignerLab a one-off thing or is it intended to become a regular event? We hope this will become a reg- ular event because technological developments and advances will continue. Thus, an event at which practitioners can both make direct comparisons and trial new sys- tems should become a popular and regular occurrence. Dental Tribune thanks Dr Gardner for the interview. Dr Graham Gardner at the first EAS congress last year. © European Aligner Society By DTI BRISBANE, Australia: The Australian Society of Orthodontists’ Foundation for Research and Education (ASOFRE) willplayhosttomanyofthespecial- ty’s leading figures on 3 and 4 March at its 2017 Foundation Meeting at the Hilton hotel in Brisbane. The organisers have warmly invited dental practitioners to attend the meeting, which has the theme of “Aesthetics and evidence” this year. The foundation is the primary organisation for orthodontic re- search and education in Australia. It aims to foster a collaborative and sharing environment through its biennial Foundation Meetings and provides financial and educational support to Australian universities, students and researchers in the field of orthodontics. The event’s keynote speaker will be Prof. Henry Fields, the Vig/ Williams Endowed Division Chair of Orthodontics at the Ohio State University’s College of Dentistry in the US. Fields’s talk will cover growth modification, smile aes- thetics, and orthodontic surgical treatments. In addition, a number of Australian and international re- searchers will be conducting pres- entations throughout the two days of the meeting. Those speaking in- clude Dr Prashant Zaveri, Chairman of the Asian Pacific Foundation for OrthodonticResearchandEducation, and recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia Dr John Fricker. The Foundation Dinner on the evening of 3 March is sure to be a highlight, as it will take place in the riverside restaurant of Brisbane’s heritage-listed Customs House. Brisbane is set to host the Australian Society of Orthodontists’ Foundation for Research and Education’s 2017 Foundation Meeting. © Maythee Voran/Shutterstock.com Organisers of ASOFRE 2017 invite orthodontists to Brisbane