Growth Stimulation of the Mandible by Dento-facial Orthopedics: Treatment Options & Limitations

For more than a century, orthodontists have tried to stimulate growth of the mandible by so-called functional or orthopedic appliances. However, dento-alveolar compensations are responsible for poor skeletal changes. Proclination of the lower incisors can be avoided by combining functional appliances with skeletal anchorage in the mandible. This leads to true mandibular lengthening, glenoid fossa modeling, and mandibular rotation, quantified by 3D imaging.