Page 31 - Inspire Health September/October 2015
P. 31
CE
YOURSELF
THIS ORTHODONTIC
APPLIANCE GUARANTEES
GOOD VIBRATIONS
By Patrick O’Donnell
Orthodontic appliances of 2000s, researchers started applying that Studies back up Hartman’s findings.
any sort seem to inspire research to orthodontics and found that A clinical trial at the University of Texas
a love/hate relationship: the vibrations helped speed up the rate Health Science Center at San Antonio
Patients love the confidence-boosting of “bone remodeling” — a term that showed that tooth movement could be
results of straight teeth, but often hate describes how teeth move through the accelerated “by 106 percent during the
the process that goes into achieving them. bone in your jaw. initial alignment phase and 38 percent to
50 percent during closure of (extraction)
To that end, researchers have long been The result, says Dr. Jason Hartman of space.” Another study published in the
searching for ways to shorten the duration Spark Orthodontics, is that orthodontic Journal of Clinical Orthodontics found a
that children and adults need to wear smile- patients have been able to reduce their “clinically beneficial and statistically significant”
fixing hardware — be it a set of braces or a treatment time “by 38 to 50 percent” with increase in the rate of tooth movement.
clear aligner such as Invisalign. a device called AcceleDent, created by
orthodontists at The University of Texas The lightweight, battery-operated
In the mid 1980s, researchers found Health Science Center at San Antonio. device works by emitting micropulses —
that in certain cases, vibration could help tiny vibrations — through a mouthpiece
treat osteoporosis and even speed the “We’re coming up on three years that’s custom-fitted to the patient. The
healing of fractured bones. In the early of using AcceleDent with our patients,” patient wears the hands-free mouthpiece
he says. “We’ve seen incredible results. for only 20 minutes a day, and the device
AcceleDent, an Our patients are getting done with logs usage time for the doctor’s review.
orthodontic device their treatments quicker and more
that can speed up comfortably. When we first started Hartman says one of the things he
Invisalign treatments. offering AcceleDent to our patients, it likes about AcceleDent is that it eases
was an a la carte option. However, about the discomfort often associated with
six months into using it, our patients had orthodontic appliances.
become raving fans of the speed and
comfort they were experiencing, and we “Patients sometimes worry, ‘I have to
decided to include this device for all of use this device every day?’ but because
our Invisalign patients.” it makes things feel better, because it’s a
comfort thing and not just a speed thing,
For instance, Hartman says, a it’s rare that patients forget to use it,”
patient undergoing a standard Invisalign Hartman says.
treatment goes through an average of 25
plastic aligner trays in one year. When “Invisible” aligners and micropulse
combining AcceleDent with Invisalign, technology may sound like science fiction,
“they go through 25 plastic aligner trays in but the fact is that treatment options
six months — half the time,” he says. have come a long way in the constant
quest for better dental care.
September § October 2015 INSPIRE HEALTH 31
YOURSELF
THIS ORTHODONTIC
APPLIANCE GUARANTEES
GOOD VIBRATIONS
By Patrick O’Donnell
Orthodontic appliances of 2000s, researchers started applying that Studies back up Hartman’s findings.
any sort seem to inspire research to orthodontics and found that A clinical trial at the University of Texas
a love/hate relationship: the vibrations helped speed up the rate Health Science Center at San Antonio
Patients love the confidence-boosting of “bone remodeling” — a term that showed that tooth movement could be
results of straight teeth, but often hate describes how teeth move through the accelerated “by 106 percent during the
the process that goes into achieving them. bone in your jaw. initial alignment phase and 38 percent to
50 percent during closure of (extraction)
To that end, researchers have long been The result, says Dr. Jason Hartman of space.” Another study published in the
searching for ways to shorten the duration Spark Orthodontics, is that orthodontic Journal of Clinical Orthodontics found a
that children and adults need to wear smile- patients have been able to reduce their “clinically beneficial and statistically significant”
fixing hardware — be it a set of braces or a treatment time “by 38 to 50 percent” with increase in the rate of tooth movement.
clear aligner such as Invisalign. a device called AcceleDent, created by
orthodontists at The University of Texas The lightweight, battery-operated
In the mid 1980s, researchers found Health Science Center at San Antonio. device works by emitting micropulses —
that in certain cases, vibration could help tiny vibrations — through a mouthpiece
treat osteoporosis and even speed the “We’re coming up on three years that’s custom-fitted to the patient. The
healing of fractured bones. In the early of using AcceleDent with our patients,” patient wears the hands-free mouthpiece
he says. “We’ve seen incredible results. for only 20 minutes a day, and the device
AcceleDent, an Our patients are getting done with logs usage time for the doctor’s review.
orthodontic device their treatments quicker and more
that can speed up comfortably. When we first started Hartman says one of the things he
Invisalign treatments. offering AcceleDent to our patients, it likes about AcceleDent is that it eases
was an a la carte option. However, about the discomfort often associated with
six months into using it, our patients had orthodontic appliances.
become raving fans of the speed and
comfort they were experiencing, and we “Patients sometimes worry, ‘I have to
decided to include this device for all of use this device every day?’ but because
our Invisalign patients.” it makes things feel better, because it’s a
comfort thing and not just a speed thing,
For instance, Hartman says, a it’s rare that patients forget to use it,”
patient undergoing a standard Invisalign Hartman says.
treatment goes through an average of 25
plastic aligner trays in one year. When “Invisible” aligners and micropulse
combining AcceleDent with Invisalign, technology may sound like science fiction,
“they go through 25 plastic aligner trays in but the fact is that treatment options
six months — half the time,” he says. have come a long way in the constant
quest for better dental care.
September § October 2015 INSPIRE HEALTH 31
