Ugnė Sadauskienė¹, Vilija Berlin¹

¹Vilnius University hospital Zalgiris clinic, Vilnius, Lithuania

 Abstract

            Background and aim:  The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the link between clear aligner therapy and apical root resorption and to compare the amount of apical root resorption using different orthodontic appliances – clear aligners and fixed orthodontic treatment.

            Materials and methods: Electronic and manual search for articles was carried out with specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. All selected studies had to be published in English between 2009 and 2019.

            Results:  6 articles met the criteria and were selected for this systematic review. 3 of 6 studies presented comparisons between results of clear aligner therapy and fixed appliance treatment. The external root resorption after treatment with clear aligners was similar or significantly lower than with use of fixed appliances. Other 3 studies were only investigating results of treatment with clear aligners. The incidence of root resorption ranged between 46% and 81%. However, only 3,69% to 6,31% of all teeth were affected by considerable root length reduction (>20%).

            Conclusion: Both incidence and severity of apical root resorption are lower after clear aligner therapy compared with root resorption results using fixed orthodontic treatment.

            Key words: Orthodontic treatment; Clear aligners; Apical root resorption.