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EFFICACY OF TEMPORARY FIXED RETENTION FOLLOWING ...

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It is difficult to draw firm conclusions as to why total chin shows up as a<br />

statistically significant predictive variable at the pretreatment stage and again at<br />

posttreatment based on the results of the present study. The greater total chin<br />

dimension that persisted from the pretreatment stage to posttreatment stage in<br />

the fixed retention group was associated with more anteriorly positioned<br />

mandibular incisors at both treatment stages, as evidenced by greater IMPA and<br />

incisor depth.<br />

Many clinicians today consider fixed retention in the treatment planning<br />

phase when severe pretreatment Incisor Irregularity is present. In the present<br />

study, there was no statistical difference in Incisor Irregularity prior to treatment<br />

(5.4 mm in the fixed group versus 5.9 mm in the removable group). However, by<br />

the end of treatment, Incisor Irregularity was significantly greater in the group<br />

(0.5 mm versus 0.2 mm) in which a fixed retainer was used. Greater Incisor<br />

Irregularity at the end of treatment seems to have added to a sense of incomplete<br />

orthodontic correction and greater risk for future instability.<br />

A deeper Curve of Spee persisted in the fixed retention group following<br />

treatment (0.8 mm versus 0.4 mm), albeit small, and this was identified as a<br />

significant predictor in the multivariate statistical analysis. Incomplete leveling<br />

of the Curve of Spee seems to have influenced the decision in favor of using fixed<br />

retention. Yet when evaluating the amount of change in the Curve of Spee<br />

during the recall period, the removable group displayed a slightly greater<br />

relapse (0.6 mm versus 0.4 mm), revealing that fixed incisor retention added little<br />

to maintaining the Curve of Spee correction. Along this same line, lack of molar<br />

correction during treatment (where a Class I molar relationship was not fully<br />

achieved) was greater in the fixed retention group (1.5 mm versus 1.0 mm). This<br />

difference was statistically significant when evaluated univariately (Table A-2),<br />

and could have been the result of the decreased mandibular incisor uprighting<br />

also seen in this group.<br />

Considered together, there was a deeper Curve of Spee and greater molar<br />

relationship during treatment in the removable group than in the fixed retention<br />

group. This suggests that fixed retention could have been considered following<br />

treatment if there was a sense of incomplete correction or an inability to achieve<br />

the desired degree of orthodontic correction.<br />

Clinical Relevance<br />

Our perception is that the use of temporary fixed retention following<br />

orthodontic treatment has largely been abandoned. This is predominately<br />

because of concerns over maintenance responsibility, periodontal health, caries<br />

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