Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download
ePaper created 2018-03-13, 09:28:55 | version 1.38.0
research | Fig. 22a Fig. 22b Fig. 22c Fig. 22d Fig. 23a Fig. 23b Fig. 24a Fig. 24b Case 3 A 30-year-old male patient, after two unsuccessful pre- vious orthodontic treatments, with a Class II malocclu- sion with an anterior open bite, a unilateral cross bite and generalised recession on the buccal aspects of maxil- lary teeth presented for treatment (Figs. 23a & b). The ideal treatment would have included surgically assisted maxillary expansion, followed by combined orthodontic– orthognathic surgery. The patient refused this treatment, but accepted an alternative treatment with open-flap corticotomy extended from molar to molar and gener- ous hard- and soft-tissue grafting (Figs. 24a & b). Treat- ment started a week after the surgery and continued with visits every two to three weeks. Once arch coordi- nation had been slowly achieved with 0.019 × 0.025 in. stainless-steel archwires (Figs. 25a & b), followed by 0.021 × 0.025 in. stainless-steel archwires (Figs. 26a & b and 27a & b), the anterior open bite spontaneously closed (Figs. 28a & b). The CBCT images before and after treat- ment reveal the increased volume of the maxillary alveolar bone that allowed the successful expansion of the upper arch, despite the age of the patient and the initial peri- odontal problems (Figs. 29a & b). Conclusion Alveolar corticotomy (or periodontally facilitated ortho- dontics as we prefer) is an effective procedure in which alveolar decortication is associated with orthodontic treatment with the primary goal of enhancing OTM and reducing anchorage needs. By accelerating the rate of OTM and reducing the complexity of a clinical case, bone ortho 1 2018 27