Initial effects of treatment of Class II malocclusion with the Herren activator, activator-headgear combination, and Jasper Jumper

Abstract

The initial effects of treatment of Class II, Division 1 malocclusion with an activator, according to Herren (27 patients), with an activator-headgear combination (20 patients), or with the Jasper Jumper appliance (25 patients) were studied on lateral cephalograms from before and after 6 to 8 months of treatment. The patients' ages ranged from 9 to 12 years. At the end of the period of observation, the correction in overjet and molar relationship was more complete in the patients with the Jasper Jumper than in the patients with the activator. Whereas all the patients with the Jasper Jumper showed neutral occlusion, this was the case in only 20 of the 47 patients with the activator. The correction of the distal occlusion occurred through a combination of skeletal and dentoalveolar adaptations. Skeletal changes accounted for 42%, 35%, and 48% of the overjet correction by the Herren-type activator, the headgear-activator, and the Jasper Jumper, respectively. The correction of the molar relationship occurred to 55%, 46%, and 38% by skeletal changes in the respective groups. Dentoalveolar compensation (distal movement of the upper molars, mesial movement of the lower molars) appeared to be inversely related to skeletal adaptation. The patients with the Jasper Jumper showed a marked intrusion of the lower incisors with a consequent reduction in overbite. (Am J Orthod Dentofac Orthop 1997;112:19-27.)