A Brief Review on Micro-Implants and Their Use in Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopaedics

Sorana-Maria Bucur,Vittorio Checchi,Cristian Doru Olteanu,Luminița Ligia Vaida

doi:10.3390/app112210719

Abstract

The aim of this study was to review the literature and evaluate the failure rates and factors that affect the stability and success of temporary anchorage devices (TADs) used as orthodontic anchorage. Data was collected from electronic databases: MEDLINE database and Google Scholar. Four combinations of term were used as keywords: “micro-implant”, “mini-implant”, “mini-screw”, and “orthodontics”. The following selection criteria were used to select appropriate articles: articles on implants and screws used as orthodontic anchorage, published in English, with both prospective and retrospective clinical and experimental investigations. The search provided 209 abstracts about TADs used as anchorage. After reading and applying the selection criteria, 66 articles were included in the study. The data obtained were divided into two topics: which factors affected TAD success rate and to what degree and in how many articles they were quoted. Clinical factors were divided into three main groups: patient-related, implant related, and management-related factors. Although all articles included in this meta-analysis reported success rates of greater than 80 percent, the factors determining success rates were inconsistent between the studies analyzed and this made conclusions difficult.

Highlights

Anchorage is one of the most important elements for successful orthodontic treatment
Orthodontic mini-implants can be a powerful aid in resolving challenging malocclusions that require increased anchorage potential
The overall success rate of skeletal anchorage using micro-implants was ranged from 79% to 98.2% [4], described by other studies as being 85.0% [6]

Summary

Introduction

Anchorage is one of the most important elements for successful orthodontic treatment. Orthodontic mini-implants can be a powerful aid in resolving challenging malocclusions that require increased anchorage potential Their use is versatile, minimally invasive, and proves a good ratio between costs and benefits of orthodontic treatments. The skeletal anchorage on micro-implants is a solution to treat adult orthodontic patients with a lack of quantity or quality of dental elements when conventional dental or mobile anchorage is not possible or cases with poor patients’ compliance where the wear of mobile devices or elastics is compromised [2] Their use is the ideal solution in cases where dental anchorage may result in undesirable side effects such as vertical dimension changes produced by the use of conventional inter-maxillary forces [1]. Micro-implants as skeletal anchorage lead to a more effective orthopedic growth modification, and their use helps camouflage orthodontic treatment for those patients who were not eligible for orthognathic surgery [3,4]

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Conclusion