Evaluation of corticotomy-facilitated orthodontics and piezocision in rapid canine retraction

• Two surgical techniques—corticotomy and piezocision—for accelerating canine retraction were evaluated.
• Half of the patients had corticotomy on 1 side, and the other half had piezocision on 1 side.
• The other sides in both groups were the controls.
• The rates of canine retraction were higher in the surgery side and with corticotomy more than piezocision.
• The surgeries had no side effects with regard to the periodontium and type of tooth movement.

IntroductionThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of corticotomy-facilitated orthodontics and piezocision in rapid canine retraction.MethodsThe sample consisted of 20 patients (15-25 years old) with Class II Division 1 malocclusions. The suggested treatment plan was extraction of the maxillary first premolars with subsequent canine retraction. The sample was divided into 2 equal groups. In the first group, 1 side of the maxillary arch was randomly chosen for treatment with corticotomy, and in the second group, piezocision treatment was used. The contralateral sides of both groups served as the controls. Cuts and perforations were performed with a piezotome, and canine retraction was initiated bilaterally in both groups with closed-coil nickel-titanium springs that applied 150 g of force on each side. The following variables were examined over a 3-month follow-up period: rate of canine crown tip, molar anchorage loss, canine rotation, canine inclination, canine root resorption, plaque index, gingival index, probing depth, attachment level, and gingival recession. The rate of canine crown tip was assessed every 2 weeks after the start of canine retraction at 6 time points.ResultsThe rates of canine crown tip were greater in the experimental sides than in the control sides in both groups. Corticotomies produced greater rates of canine movement than did piezocision at 4 time points. Canine root resorption was greater in the control sides. The remaining studied variables exhibited no differences between the control and the experimental sides.ConclusionsCorticotomy-facilitated orthodontics and piezocision are efficient treatment modalities for accelerating canine retraction.