Orthodontic aligner therapy outcomes in children with autism spectrum disorder.

BACKGROUND: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face unique challenges in oral care. Aligner therapy offers a promising alternative to conventional approaches for this patient group. AIM: To evaluate orthodontic aligner therapy outcomes in children with ASD using the Peer Assessment Rating (PAR) Index and the Index of Complexity, Outcome, and Need (ICON), and to investigate whether concomitant disorders affect ICON, PAR scores, and treatment duration. DESIGN: Two calibrated observers assessed digital dental casts and intraoral pictures of 37 children with ASD before (T0) and after (T1) their treatment. At T0, the participants' average age was 12.9 years (SD = 1.68); at T1, post-therapy, the average age was 14.9 years (SD = 1.51). All participants underwent orthodontic aligner therapy. Statistical methods employed in this study included descriptive analysis, Wilcoxon tests, and univariate linear regression. RESULTS: Posttreatment, median ICON scores decreased significantly from 74 to 14, and median PAR scores from 36 to 8 (p < .0001), demonstrating "excellent to substantial" improvement in 89.2% (n = 33) of the children. Comorbidities, present in 62% of patients, did not significantly affect treatment duration (22.6 ± 11.02 months). CONCLUSION: Children with ASD significantly benefit from orthodontic aligner therapy, emphasizing the need for tailored orthodontic care.

Evaluation of the use of a clinical practice guideline for external apical root resorption among orthodontists.

BACKGROUND: External apical root resorption (EARR) is a frequently observed adverse event in patients undergoing fixed appliance therapy. Assessing the patients' risk during treatment is important, as certain factors are assumed to be associated with an increased likelihood of occurrence. However, their predictive value remains limited, making evidence-based clinical decision-making challenging for orthodontists. To address this issue, the Dutch Association of Orthodontists (NvVO) developed a clinical practice guideline (CPG) for EARR in accordance with the AGREE II instrument (Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II) in 2018. The aim of this study is to get insight into the actual utilization and the practical implementation of the guideline among orthodontists. The hypothesis to be tested was that after its introduction, clinical practice for EARR has changed towards the recommendations in the CPG. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the use of the 2018 clinical practice guidelines for EARR among orthodontists 3 years after its introduction. METHODS: A questionnaire using a 7-point Likert scale was developed concerning four domains of EARR described in the guideline. The questionnaire was piloted, finalised, and then distributed digitally among Dutch orthodontists. REDCap was used for data collection, starting with an invitation email in June 2021, followed by two reminders. Effect was tested by the Mann-Whitney U test, and the influence of demographic variables was analysed. RESULTS: Questionnaires were sent out to all 275 and completed by 133 (response rate 48%); N = 59 females and N = 73 males were included; 81% had their training in the Netherlands, 89% had ≥ 6 years of work experience, and 89% worked in private orthodontic practice. One hundred thirty orthodontists (98.5%) reported changes in clinical practice. The biggest positive change in clinical behaviour regarding EARR occurred if EARR was diagnosed during treatment. Sex, clinical experience, country of specialist training, and working environment of the respondents did not affect clinical practices regarding EARR. CONCLUSIONS: This questionnaire demonstrated that, 3 years after introduction of the guideline, orthodontists improved their self-reported clinical practices to a more standardised management of root resorption. None of the demographic predictors had a significant effect on the results.

Three-Dimensional Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT)-Derived Soft Tissue Changes in Patients with Unilateral Cleft Lip, Alveolus, and Palate with Midfacial Deficiency after 1.5 Years of Bone-Anchored Maxillary Protraction.

Background: Bone-anchored maxillary protraction (BAMP) aims to correct midfacial deficiencies, with proven positive skeletal changes without potential unwanted side effects. However, the influence of BAMP treatment on facial soft tissues, particularly in subjects with complete unilateral cleft lip, alveolus, and palate (CUCLAP), remains unclear. Methods: This single-center longitudinal cohort study examined the effects of 1.5 years of BAMP treatment on facial soft tissues in growing subjects with complete unilateral cleft lip, alveolus, and palate. The sample consisted of 25 patients, age range 9.7 to 12.6 years. Three-dimensional surface models derived from CBCT scans were superimposed on stable structures of the anterior cranial base and on the occipital area posterior of the foramen magnum to assess three-dimensional changes due to growth and BAMP therapy. Results: The results revealed a moderate positive correlation (Pearson's correlation coefficient from 0.203 to 0.560) between changes in hard tissue and soft tissue; some correlations were found to be weak (<0.300). Linear changes in soft tissue following BAMP were in the same direction as skeletal changes, showing downward, forward, and outward displacement. The only exception was in the vertical dimension. The lower facial third showed a slight but significant reduction, mainly in lip length (-1.2 mm), whereas the middle facial third showed a small increase (1.1 mm). Conclusions: It was concluded that during BAMP, soft tissue changes occur in the same direction as skeletal changes, although with a larger variability and less pronounced effects.

A multi-centric, single-blinded, randomized, parallel-group study to evaluate the effectiveness of nasoalveolar moulding treatment in non-syndromic patients with complete unilateral cleft lip, alveolus and palate (NAMUC study): a study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Cleft lip and palate (CLP) are among the most common congenital anomaly that affects up to 33,000 newborns in India every year. Nasoalveolar moulding (NAM) is a non-surgical treatment performed between 0 and 6 months of age to reduce the cleft and improve nasal aesthetics prior to lip surgery. The NAM treatment has been a controversial treatment option with 51% of the cleft teams in Europe, 37% of teams in the USA and 25 of cleft teams in India adopting this methodology. This treatment adds to the already existing high burden of care for these patients. Furthermore, the supporting evidence for this technique is limited with no high-quality long-term clinical trials available on the effectiveness of this treatment. METHOD: The NAMUC study is an investigator-initiated, multi-centre, single-blinded randomized controlled trial with a parallel group design. The study will compare the effectiveness of NAM treatment provided prior to lip surgery against the no-treatment control group in 274 patients with non-syndromic unilateral complete cleft lip and palate. The primary endpoint of the trial is the nasolabial aesthetics measured using the Asher McDade index at 5 years of age. The secondary outcomes include dentofacial development, speech, hearing, cost-effectiveness, quality of life, patient perception, feeding and intangible benefits. Randomization will be carried out via central online system and stratified based on cleft width, birth weight and clinical trial site. DISCUSSION: We expect the results from this study on the effectiveness of treatment with NAM appliance in the long term along with the cost-effectiveness evaluation can eliminate the dilemma and differences in clinical care across the globe. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov CTRI/2022/11/047426 (Clinical Trials Registry India). Registered on 18 November 2022. The first patient was recruited on 11 December 2022. CTR India does not pick up on Google search with just the trial number. The following steps have to be carried out to pick up. How to search: ( https://ctri.nic.in/Clinicaltrials/advsearch.php -use the search boxes by entering the following details: Interventional trial > November 2022 > NAMUC).

Alveolar Bone Grafting in Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate: Impact of Timing on Palatal Shape.

Alveolar bone grafting (ABG) is a critical surgical intervention in patients with a cleft of the alveolus, aimed at reconstructing the alveolar ridge to facilitate proper eruption, periodontal support, and alignment of adjacent permanent teeth. The optimal timing for ABG remains debated, with late secondary ABG between the ages of 9 and 11 being widely adopted. This study compared the palatal shapes of 28 children at a mean age of 9.5 years (SD = 0.7) who underwent early secondary ABG at a mean age of 2.1 years (SD = 0.6) or 33 children at a mean age of 10.8 years (SD = 1.5) who underwent late secondary ABG at a mean age of 8.6 years (SD = 1.3) to 60 non-cleft controls at a mean age of 8.6 years (SD = 1.2). The palatal shapes were captured with 239 landmarks digitized on the palate on a digital model. Utilizing geometric morphometric methods, i.e., generalized Procrustes superimpositions, principal component analysis, and permutation tests, we assessed the impact of ABG timing on palatal morphology. The first five principal components (PCs) explained 64.1% of the total shape variability: PC1 = 26.1%; PC2 = 12%; PC3 = 11.9%; PC4 = 7.8%; and PC5 = 6.4%. The Procrustes distance between both cleft groups and the control group was more than twice as large as the Procrustes distance between the early ABG and late ABG groups. Nonetheless, all intergroup differences were statistically significant. Our findings suggest that early ABG has a limited negative effect on palatal shape, providing comparable outcomes to late ABG. The study highlights the potential suitability of early ABG, challenging conventional practices and encouraging further exploration into its long-term effects on maxillary growth.