Influence of personalized replacement protocol and low-level laser therapy combined with vibration on tooth movement rate and tooth movement accuracy in clear aligner treatment: a randomized clinical trial.

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the influence of personalized aligner replacement, with or without physical methods of acceleration using low-frequency vibration combined with a low-level laser, on the tooth movement rate and accuracy of clear aligners.

Materials and methods: Forty participants were randomly allocated to three groups. Fourteen participants used the standard replacement protocol in Group A, Group B included 14 participants using a personalized replacement protocol, and 12 participants in Group C followed the personalized replacement protocol and used a physical device that combined low-frequency vibration and low-level laser. Aligner replacement cycles of the first 12 steps were recorded, and GOM inspect suite software 2022 (GOM; Braunschweig, Germany) was used to evaluate maxillary molar movement accuracy using digital models collected before treatment and at the end of the 12th step.

Results: No significant difference was found in the accuracy of maxillary molar movement between Groups A and B, but the tooth movement rate in Group B was significantly greater. The accuracy of maxillary molar movement was similar in Groups B and C, and the tooth movement rate in Group C was significantly increased.

Conclusions: The personalized replacement protocol decreased the number of aligner replacement cycles without impacting the accuracy of tooth movement. With personalized replacement, a physical method of acceleration combining low-level laser and low-frequency vibration significantly accelerated orthodontic tooth movement and had little influence on the accuracy of tooth movement.