Abstract
BackgroundTo evaluate the facial aesthetic effects of orthodontic treatment performed with clear aligners and to compare it to an untreated control group, on lower third facial ageing in adult patients through the use of the Wrinkle Severity Rating Scale (WSRS) at the beginning (T0) and at the end (T1) of the study period.Material and MethodsA clear aligners treated group (TG) of 68 patients was compared to a control group of 33 untreated patients (UG). Each group was divided in 2 subgroups according to age: subgroup 1 if under 40 years of age and subgroup 2 if over. Facial aesthetics of the lower third was evaluated at T0 and T1 by a panel of five aesthetic experts with WSRS.ResultsStatistically significant changes were found in all subgroups comparing WSRS scores at T0 and T1. The between group comparisons revealed that wearing clear aligners produces a statistically relevant improvement in lower third facial aesthetics both in younger (p< 0.05) and older (p< 0.001) patients.ConclusionsThe present retrospective cohort study has successfully shown that malocclusion therapy conducted through the use of clear aligners in a population of adults affected by dental crowding has beneficial effects on lower third facial ageing. Key words:Orthodontics, clear aligners, facial aesthetics, facial wrinkles, compliance.
Highlights
Ageing is an inevitable life process: from birth human genes lead the body through a series of changes ranging from growth and development to maturation, ageing and death
No systematic error was found between the Wrinkle Severity Rating Scale (WSRS) repeated measurements
The difference between TG2 and UG2 was -0.65 (p < 0.001) (Tables 3,4). This retrospective cohort-study, whose aim was to evaluate the effects of orthodontic treatment on lower third facial ageing in adult patients, has successfully shown that wearing clear aligners during orthodontic treatment has beneficial effects on face soft tissues when compared to the aesthetic impact of patients of an untreated group
Summary
Ageing is an inevitable life process: from birth human genes lead the body through a series of changes ranging from growth and development to maturation, ageing and death. A recent systematic review demonstrated that clear aligner treatment is effective in aligning and levelling the arches in nongrowing subjects (7) The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to evaluate the effects of orthodontic treatment performed with clear aligners on lower third facial ageing in adult patients through the use of WSRS by a panel of five aesthetic experts. -Statistical methods Due to the lack of scientific reports regarding the evaluation of the impact of orthodontic therapy on facial ageing, the sample size calculation of each group was conducted by performing a power analysis based on the results of a previous pilot study, to detect at least a 1 grade difference between groups, with a standard deviation of 0.9 grade, an alpha value of 0.05 and a power of 0.8 and was calculated to be 13 subjects. Lower third facial wrinkle changes during study period (T1-T0) were evaluated and paired t-tests were used to assess statistical significance within each group. All statistical analyses were performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 15.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA)
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