Cephalometric evaluation of the anterior open bite treatment

Abstract

The present study was aimed at evaluating the treatment changes of anterior open bite malocclusion cases treated by means of the Multiloop Edgewise Arch Wire technique, which is considered one of the more effective treatment modalities for anterior open bite malocclusions. The open bite sample was composed of 16 young adults, 4 males and 12 females. The normal occlusion sample, as a controlled sample was composed of 58 young adults who had pleasing facial profiles and normal occlusions with no experience of orthodontic or prosthodontic treatment. The normal sample was subdivided by the cephalometric vertical facial relationships. Forty adults with cephalometric vertical facial relationships within the normal range of Korean standards were classified as Normal Occlusion Group 1. Eighteen adults with an increased vertical facial relationship but with normal occlusion, were classified as Normal Occlusion Group 2. Thirty-nine reference points were digitized on each film, and the computerized cephalometric analysis was obtained with 8 skeletal, 10 dentoalveolar, 17 teeth angulations, and 4 occlusal plane measurements. Treatment changes were determined by the paired t test, and the structural differences between the four groups were tabulated by the Student’s t test. The treatment changes were observed mainly in the dentoalveolar region in the upper and the lower occlusal planes, accompanied by the uprighting of the posterior teeth to the occlusal plane through the distal tipping movement of the entire dentition. After the treatment, there was a tendency for the structural feature of the open bite group to approximate those of the normal occlusion group 2. This ascertains that the treatment changes of open bite malocclusion produced by means of the multiloop edgewise arch wire technique are similar to those found in the natural dentoalveolar compensatory mechanism. (Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 1999;115:29-38)