 Orthodontics is an area of dentistry involved with the movement of teeth through the bone to provide a more harmonious alignment of teeth and jaw. In recent years, the greatest break through in this field has been the development of passive self legating brackets along with the design of special “memory wires”. When these two elements are used as a system it results in teeth moving quickly through the bone with continuous light forces. These gentle forces also develop bone along with the movement of the teeth which aids in the stability of the teeth in the new position.
Sometimes in early years when expansion of the dental arches are required functional appliances may be used called ALF (Advanced Light wire Functional). These appliances are very inconspicuous and allow the tongue to properly function in speech and swallow patterns which aids in the normal development of children’s arches. Again, the philosophy of continuous light force is embraced with this technique.
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