Factors affecting the duration of orthodontic treatment: a systematic review.

The aim of this study was to systematically investigate the literature for articles referring exclusively to the duration of orthodontic therapy and to explore the various factors that could affect this. A Medline search from 1990 to the first week of March 2005 was conducted, the Cochrane Database for Systematic Reviews was utilized, five orthodontic journals were hand searched, the abstracts of related articles were reviewed to search for any relevant studies that might have been missed, and the reference lists of the retrieved articles were hand assessed. Eligibility was determined by reading the reports identified by the search. The end result of this search provided 41 articles. Although there is a need for more conclusive research, the present review revealed several conclusions concerning the duration of orthodontic treatment: (1) there are indications that extraction treatment lasts longer than the non-extraction therapy; (2) age does not seem to play a role provided the patients are in the permanent dentition; (3) when Class II division 1 malocclusions are considered, there is evidence that the earlier the orthodontic treatment begins the longer its duration; (4) there is conflicting information regarding treatment duration within public health systems; (5) combined orthodontic-surgical treatment duration is variable and appears to be operator sensitive; (6) various factors, such as the technique employed, the skill and number of operators involved, the compliance of the patients, and the severity of the initial malocclusion, all seem to play a role; and (7) impacted maxillary canines appear to prolong treatment.

[1]  S. Richmond,et al.  The time-factor in orthodontics: what influences the duration of treatments in National Health Service practices? , 2001, Community dentistry and oral epidemiology.

[2]  L. Wolford,et al.  The stability of double jaw surgery: a comparison of rigid versus wire fixation. , 1991, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[3]  J. Miguel,et al.  The duration and sequencing of surgical-orthodontic treatment. , 1995, The International journal of adult orthodontics and orthognathic surgery.

[4]  H. Tüz,et al.  Rapid canine retraction and orthodontic treatment with dentoalveolar distraction osteogenesis. , 2005, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[5]  P. Major,et al.  Predictors for Class II treatment duration. , 2005, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[6]  J. McColl,et al.  Factors Associated with the Standard and Duration of Orthodontic Treatment , 1996, British journal of orthodontics.

[7]  E. F. Harris,et al.  Age effects on orthodontic treatment: adolescents contrasted with adults. , 1991, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[8]  M. Raitio,et al.  Factors affecting the duration of orthodontic treatment in children. A retrospective study. , 2004, Swedish Dental Journal.

[9]  W. Thomson,et al.  Factors influencing treatment time in orthodontic patients. , 2006, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[10]  W. Proffit,et al.  Outcomes in a 2-phase randomized clinical trial of early Class II treatment. , 2004, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[11]  K. Vig,et al.  Orthodontic process and outcome: efficacy studies--strategies for developing process and outcome measures: a new era in orthodontics. , 1998, Clinical Orthodontics and Research.

[12]  H. Pancherz,et al.  Efficiency of early and late Class II Division 1 treatment. , 2002, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[13]  Ian D. Shaw,et al.  Effectiveness of treatment for Class II malocclusion with the Herbst or twin-block appliances: a randomized, controlled trial. , 2003, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[14]  N. Fox.  Longer orthodontic treatment may result in greater external apical root resorption , 2005, Evidence-Based Dentistry.

[15]  M. Chew,et al.  Effectiveness and duration of two-arch fixed appliance treatment. , 2000, Australian orthodontic journal.

[16]  T. Eliades,et al.  Risk Management in Orthodontics: Experts' Guide to Malpractice , 2004 .

[17]  J. W. Jones.  A medico-legal review of some current UK guidelines in orthodontics: a personal view. , 1999, British journal of orthodontics.

[18]  S. Cunningham,et al.  Perceptions of outcome following orthognathic surgery. , 1996, The British journal of oral & maxillofacial surgery.

[19]  L. Leite,et al.  Correlation of the cranial base angle and its components with other dental/skeletal variables and treatment time. , 2009, The Angle orthodontist.

[20]  S. Richmond,et al.  The Provision of Orthodontic Care in the General Dental Services of England and Wales: Extraction Patterns, Treatment Duration, Appliance Types and Standards , 1993, British journal of orthodontics.

[21]  M. Slakter,et al.  Examiner reliability for two methods of assessing malocclusion. , 1978, The Angle orthodontist.

[22]  S. Cunningham,et al.  The effect of two alternative methods of canine exposure upon subsequent duration of orthodontic treatment. , 1998, International journal of paediatric dentistry.

[23]  K. Vig,et al.  Comparison of orthodontic treatment outcomes in educational and private practice settings. , 2002, Journal of Dental Education.

[24]  J. McColl,et al.  Factors influencing the outcome and duration of removable appliance treatment. , 1994, European journal of orthodontics.

[25]  A. Maganzini,et al.  Outcome assessment of Invisalign and traditional orthodontic treatment compared with the American Board of Orthodontics objective grading system. , 2005, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[26]  J. McColl,et al.  Orthodontic Treatment with Fixed Appliances in the General Dental Service in Scotland , 2000 .

[27]  G. Segal,et al.  Meta analysis of the treatment-related factors of external apical root resorption. , 2004, Orthodontics & craniofacial research.

[28]  C. Amditis,et al.  The duration of fixed orthodontic treatment: a comparison of two groups of patients treated using Edgewise brackets with 0.018" and 0.022" slots. , 2000, Australian orthodontic journal.

[29]  N. Harradine,et al.  Self-ligating brackets and treatment efficiency. , 2008, Clinical orthodontics and research.

[30]  K. Vig,et al.  The effectiveness of Class II, division 1 treatment. , 1995, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[31]  C. Sadowsky,et al.  Effectiveness and duration of orthodontic treatment in adults and adolescents. , 1998, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[32]  D. B. Tuinzing,et al.  Duration of orthodontic treatment and mandibular lengthening by means of distraction or bilateral sagittal split osteotomy in patients with Angle Class II malocclusions. , 2005, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[33]  J H McColl,et al.  Orthodontic treatment with fixed appliances in the General Dental Service in Scotland. , 2000, Journal of orthodontics.

[34]  S. Richmond,et al.  Orthodontic treatment standards in Norway. , 1993, European journal of orthodontics.

[35]  G. Cisneros,et al.  Decreased treatment time due to changes in technique and practice philosophy. , 1994, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[36]  D. Morris,et al.  Orthodontic preparation for orthognathic surgery: how long does it take and why? A retrospective study , 2003, The British journal of oral & maxillofacial surgery.

[37]  A. Becker,et al.  Success rate and duration of orthodontic treatment for adult patients with palatally impacted maxillary canines. , 2003, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[38]  S. Wei,et al.  Assessing treatment effectiveness of removable and fixed orthodontic appliances with the occlusal index. , 1990, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[39]  A. Kelly,et al.  Duration of orthodontic treatment involving orthognathic surgery. , 1999, The International journal of adult orthodontics and orthognathic surgery.

[40]  G. Shia.  Treatment overruns. , 1986, Journal of clinical orthodontics : JCO.

[41]  C. J. Summers.  The occlusal index: a system for identifying and scoring occlusal disorders. , 1971, American journal of orthodontics.

[42]  R. Smith,et al.  The duration of orthodontic treatment. , 1992, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[43]  R. Berg,et al.  Serial Extraction or Premolar Extraction in the Permanent Dentition? Comparison of Duration and Outcome of Orthodontic Treatment , 2000, Journal of Orofacial Orthopedics / Fortschritte der Kieferorthopädie.

[44]  C. Kowalski,et al.  The duration of orthodontic treatment with and without extractions: a pilot study of five selected practices. , 1990, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[45]  J. Mcdonald,et al.  The influence of operator changes on orthodontic treatment times and results in a postgraduate teaching environment. , 1998, European journal of orthodontics.

[46]  S. Straja,et al.  Treatment time, outcome, and patient satisfaction comparisons of Damon and conventional brackets. , 2001, Clinical orthodontics and research.

[47]  P W Major,et al.  Factors that relate to treatment duration for patients with palatally impacted maxillary canines. , 2001, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.

[48]  C. Cobb,et al.  An evaluation of factors affecting duration of orthodontic treatment. , 1999, American journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics : official publication of the American Association of Orthodontists, its constituent societies, and the American Board of Orthodontics.