Orthodontic treatment of anterior open bite: a review article—is surgery always necessary?

Abstract

Anterior open bite cases are very difficult to treat satisfactorily because of their multifactorial aetiology and their very high relapse rate. Dependent on the origin of the anterior open bite malocclusion and the patient's age, there are several treatment possibilities ranging from deterrent appliances, high-pull headgear, fixed appliances with and without extractions to orthognathic surgery, and skeletal anchorage with miniplates or miniscrews. The gold standard treatment of skeletal anterior open bite cases is the combined approach of orthodontic treatment with fixed appliances and orthognathic surgery. In recent years, temporary anchorage devices (TAD) have been developed to correct anterior open bites orthodontically. With the introduction of TAD as an effective treatment modality, orthognathic surgery may be avoidable in selected anterior open bite cases. This is a relatively new technique and to date there remains a lack of evidence of long-term stability of anterior open bite closure with TAD.