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Sivakumar et al
REVI EW
Intra-arch Retraction Mechanics-
A contemporary review.
Arunachalam Sivakumar. MDS
Assistant Professor
Ashi ma Vali alhan. BDSIPb). DDS. MS tUSAI
Professor and Head.
Director of Postgradu;)te ludles.
Department of Orthodont ics and Denfofacial Orthopaedics,
ManiJ)al Coll ege of DenIal Scienc.es, Manipal.
Abstract
Extraction space cl osure involves carefully designed treatment strategy as to lose or not to lose
the anchorage. Whether anterior retradion or poSlerior protraction. or a combination of both
is used. the same basic principles of retracti on mechanics apply. Retraction mechanics can be
divided into two categories. fridion and frictionless. On<:e a decision to extrad teeth has been
made. the cli nician muSl plan to implement the mechanics based on the demands of the case.
Both the mechanics have their own merits and demerits. This article consolidates the basic
information regardi ng the loop and sliding mechanics and their application in contemporary
pradice.
Keywords Loop mechani cs. sliding mechanics. friction mechanics. frictionless mechanics. retraction
mechanics.
Introducti on
Anteroposterior therapy procedures to close spaces.
correcl procumbency. reduce overjet. and eli mi nate
extraction sites oft en may be generally categorized as
retract ion mechani cs. Such therapy procedures may
involve interarch aCli on and response. extraoral
appl iance delivery or Ireatment within Ihe si ngle arch.
Either a continuous - or segmented - arch approach
mighl be undertaken.' The usual common characteri st ics
of Ihe vari ous procedures include posleri orl y directed
driving forces as the primary aclions. posterior segmenl
anchorage. and. often bil ateral aClion in the presence
of midsagi ttal symmetry. This article hi ghl ighl s Ihe
relracl ion mechani cs wit hin the si ngle arch. The
di splacemenls incl ude the retraction of a canine inlo a
space created by Ihe eXlracli on of a first premolar. and
Ihe retracl ion of an i ncisal segment or en masse
retracti on.
Relraction mechani cs can be broadl y divided into two
calegories. friCli on (sli di ng mechanics) and frictionless
(loop mechanics) mechanics. In slidi ng mechanics. Ihe
wire and position of the bracket control Ihe tooth
movemenl. whereas in a loop-spring system. control is
built inlo Ihe spring.
Slidi ng mechani cs vs. Closing loop mechanics
The friction system is di stinguished by Ihe fact thai d
certain degree of fricti on exists between the wi re and
Ihe bracket. The level of friction depends on multipl e
faclors. incl uding the type of orthodontic brackels and
wires used. Siai niess sleel brackel s slide wil h relal ive
ease on sleel wires. In conlrasl. wires that contain a
certain percentage of titani um (B- Ti or NiTI wires)
presenl a rougher surface compared to steel wi res and
therefore produce more friction in retracti on. Ceramic
brackels presenl an even rougher surface and Iherefore.
more fri clion when compared to metal brackets. From
a biomechanical poi nl of view. all of these factors cause
a high degree of unpredi clabili ty in sliding mechanics.'
In order 10 move a 100lh along an arc il is necessary 10
apply a force of such magnilude to overcome friction
and Ihus slart Ihe movement of Ihe tooth. The major
difficulty is Ihal of evaluat ing jusl how high Ihis force
101
/Lo:::,
A B
Figure 1: Mo ment s of force placed at bracket level and not at
cent er of resistance. A. Crown rotati o n. B. Crown
tipping.
should be. If the fo rce i s too excessi ve, the posterior
segrn e nt can inadve n e ntl y move anteriorly. The
o ccurrence of bodi l y too th movement w ith sli ding
rnechani cs can be exp l ained as fo ll ows. The l oolh
experiences a moment of force in two pl anes of space.
O ne moment rotates the tooth mesi al -out , and the other
causes di stal tipping of the crow n (Figure 1 ).The mesial
o ut mome nt is a n undesirable side effect, b ut the di sta l
c rown moment contributes to the retracti o n. Eventuall y,
thi s di stal tipping causes bindi ng of the archwi re, whi ch
produces a moment of a couple Ihal result s in di stal
root l o rque (Figure 2). As the toot h upri ghts, the moment
decreases until no lo nger thewire binds. Then, the crown
slides alo ng the arc hw ire until the di stal crown tipping
again causes binding. The process is repeated until the
Figure 2: Thi s couple produced by archw ire binding results
in di stal root torque
102
J Incl Orlhod Soc 2006; 39:101 109
tooth is retrac ted o r the elastic force is di ssipated. A
major advantage o f f r i ct i o n m e c h a ni cs i s t h at
compl icat ed w i re confi gurations are usually no t needed,
making initi al wi re p lacement less time co nsuming.
Also thi s can enhance pati ent comfo rt .}
In fri ct io nl ess mechani cs, teet h are moved w i tho ut the
brac kel s sli ding a lo ng the arch w i re. Retrac ti o n i s
accompl ished wi th loops or springs, w hi ch offer more
controll ed tooth movement than sliding mec hani cs.
Generall y closing loop mechani cs is mo re complex due
to the construc tion of the closing loop springs and their
clini cal m anagement. Whe n compared t o sliding
mechani cs, closing loop mechani cs have the fo llowi ng
advant ages; absence of fri cti o n between the bracket
and the w ire, the force level s are easier to eva luate
clini c all y and the M/ F rati o of the c uspid and the
post erior segment i s predi ct able and contro ll abl e during
retracti o n. According to Bursto ne", a spring w ith closing
loops for retracting cuspids can be described by three
principal charac teri sti cs.
1. Mo ment to Force rati o (M/ F) appli ed at the bracket
w hose value determines t he positi o n of the center
of ro t at ion during the orthodont ic movement ;
2. Load/defl ection rate (FlO) of the spr ing (the level of
force caused by the spring per acti vation).
3. Max imum strength (F max) that the spring i s ab le to
release w ithout permanent deformati on.
Fri ction M echani cs
In sliding mechani cs, there i s no need t o appl y a
ba l anc ing m o me nt for b o d il y movem e n t. T h e
appro pri at e mo ment i s app li ed to the t eeth via a
continuous arch w ire that passes through the brackets.
The moments are deli vered v i a coupl es, equa l and
opposi te no ncollinear verti cal forces, at the mesi al cmd
di stal bracket extremiti es. The crown of the canine w ill
ti p di stall y until the d iagonall y opposite edges of the
bracket slo t contac t and bind w ith the arch w ire. The
wire then produces a couple to upri ght the root {Fi gure
3).The magnitude of the moment i s determined by the
w idth of the bracket as well as characteri sti cs of the
w ire such as all oy, si ze and shape. The M/F changes as
th e tooth moves, and the toot h responds, t ypi ca ll y
progreSSing from co ntro ll ed tipping to translati o n to root
movement. Wire bracket fri c ti on is a variable factor as
the movi ng teeth di sp lace along the archw ire with thi s
approach, making it diffi cult to accuratel y predi ct M/F. 2
) L l-'S
FiGure 3 : Setl ucnce of cani ne movement during retraction
with slidi ng mec hilnics.
v - Bend Sli ding M ech an ics
Originally developed by Thomas F Mulligan \ Ihis
a pproach is particularly efficacious for closi ng space
by moving individual teeth (i.e canine retraction or
molar protraction). Mulligan introduced the concept of
" Differential torque" as a means of effective Intraoral
A nchorage."; Differential anchorage is obtained by the
application of unequal alpha and beta moments. The
higher moment i s appli ed to the anchorage teeth. The
differential moments are obtained by applying the
concept of the off-cent er V-bend. An off center V-bend
i n a wire results in unequal moments. The closer the v-
bend to a tooth or set of teeth, the higher the applied
moment. A si mpli stic model (or envisioni ng this force
system i s to consider the length of wire from the posit ion
of the V-bend apex to the brackets (Figure 4).The closer
the V-bend apex is to a bracket, the shorter the wire;
the further the distance of the V-apex to the bracket ,
the longer the w i re. A shorter w ire has a higher bending
moment than a longer wire. Therefore, a higher moment
act o n th bracket closer to the V bend than the more
di st ant brdcket. Depending o n the angl e at which the
w ire with an 0(( cent er bend crosses the bracket, and
the length of the l onger segm ent, the smal ler moment
can be clock wise, counter clockwise or non existent.
Sivakuma r el al
Figure 4: Depending on the angle at which the wire with (In
off center bend c rosses the bracket and the length
of the longer segment. the smaller moment can be
c lockwi se. counterclockwise or non exi stent.
Can ine Ret r action via V - bend M ech ani cs
I( anchorage is required, then the V-benl is placed off
center. The tooth located closest to the bend indicates
the anchor side. The opposite i s the non-anchor side.
The anchor side requires a bodily type movement (or
di splacement , w hereas non anchor si de tips somewhal
due to the lesser moment (Figure 5). As the cuspids
conti nue to move distally, the bend automaticall y
"approaches" the center of the wire. until finally when
the extracti on sites are closed, the bend is centered.
So, as the off center bend moves toward the center
during space closure. the differential torque begins 10
gradually disappear, and becomes equal and opposite
torqu e when t h e bend is f inally centered. Root
Parallel ism begins to effeo as the bend approaches
center. "
Figure 5: SchemOi t ic representation or canine retracti on ViOi v -
bend mechanics.
10)
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Frict ion Issue in Sliding M echanics
W hen two surfaces are pressed t ogether w ith a
perpendi c ul ar force, another force acting paral lel w ith
these surfaces is required to cause one of the surfaces
to move against the res ist ance of the other. Thi s i s
caused by the phenomeno n of frielian. Frictional fo rce
is that force required to move a body aga inst the
resista nce caused by fri ction. The amount of fri ctio nal
force required depends o n the smoothness of the two
surfaces a nd on the force that presses them together.
Fri ct ion can occur because the archwire - bracket -
li gature combination in some way produces a resistance
10 sliding from classical fri ction, elast ic binding and
nOlching. 7
For each archwi re - bracket combinat ion, a critical
contact angle of 2
nd
order angu lati o n (ee) exist s, at w hi ch
classical sliding fri ction gi ves way to b inding. 'e' is 2"'1
order angul ati on of an arch w ire relative to a bracket.
et: is critical contact angle or the second order
after w hi ch elasti c binding (BI) occurs. ReSistance t o
sli di ng is part i ti o ned into classical friction (FR), elasti c
binding (BI) and physi cal notching (NO), Both ar:d
BI are defined in terms of normal forces, N and kinetiC
coefficients mk. 9
z
is second o rder angulation at w hi ch
elasti c binding ends and physical notching (NO) begins.
Classi cal fr i c ti o n occ urs because of the ligaLi o n or
normal force (N ) that either presses the wi re into the
slo t base or slot In the passive confi guration, FR
is small er in magnitude but controls sliding because
binding and notching do not exist at thi s juncture. In
9
c
9
z
I',ls" ivp. configUf <llion I )r Active configuration (----1
Fi gure 6: Schematic representation show ing the partitio n of
the resistance Lo sliding (RS) into classical (ri cti on(FR).
el astic binding (BI) and physical notching (NO).
104
J Ind Orthod Soc 2006; 39:10 1-109
the active confi guration FR i s the least in magnitude
because binding, notching or both do minate (Figure 6). 7
In the acti ve confi guration, Bl can be negli gible w hen
the angul ation q approx imate l y equa l s 9
c
(9 = 9
c
)
comparabl e in magnitude to FR, or it can dominate
w he n a 9 . W hen el asti c binding occurs, it can
assume two fo;ms: elasti c deformation, w herei n the w ire
and bracket spring back to their origi nal shapes upo n
removal of force, o r plasti c d eformation, w herei n the
w ire, bracket or both permanently change shape. This
second type of binding is call ed physi cal not ch ing.
6
In
the acti ve confi gurati o n, physi ca l notching i s the
ultimate m anifest ati on of binding in which pl astic
deformati o n has o ccurred at the diagonal ti e-wings but
more l ikel y at the opposing w ire contacts." when the
normal force of binding becomes suffi cient to cause
thi s no tching (9 > 9z), sliding mechani cs all but cease
until the tipping forces or the forces of masti cation at
least temporaril y remedy the situati o n.
Sliding mech ani cs should occur o nl y at values of
angulati o n (9) that are in close proximity to the cr i tical
contact angle of second order angulati o n (qc) (9 -= 9<:L
Material innovat ions can decrease FR at 9 < 9
c
by
reducing the coefficient of fri c ti o n (mk-FR), the normal
force of li gation (N
FR
), or both, amo ng which vari o us
surface treatments and stress-relaxed ligatures are two
means. Composite materi al s can st abili ze 9 at 9 "'" ac-
by maintaining the same arch w ire - bracket clearance
whil e permitting the force - defl ect io n c haracteristi c
to vary. Decreasing the wire stiffness or increasing
inte rbracket distance can reduce RS at a
e
< a < 9
2
i ndependent of the material used.
Friclionless Mechanics
Thi s mechani cs invo l ves bending archwi re loops o f
vari ous confi gurations, sect ionall y (to deliver the desired
M/ F to an indi v idua l tooth) or segme nt all y or in a
continuous arc hw ire (to de liver the desired M/ F to
several teeth) . Thi s approach i s fri ct io n free, w hen
activated, the arch wire loops di stort from their orig inal
confi guration; as the tooth (or t eeth) moves, the loop
g raduall y ret urns t o it s undi stort ed (preact i vated)
pOSiti o n, deli vering t he energy stored at the t ime of
acti vation. Brackets are not sliding alo ng the arch w i re
during the process. An essenti al characteri sti c of closing
loops for o rthodont ic space cl osure i s thallhey are free
of fri c tion as they act. Groups of teelh can therefore be
moved w ith more accurately defi ned force syst ems for
more precise anchorage control to achi eve treatment
goals more readily than methods i n which fri cti o n plays
a role.!
Eng ineering Princi pl es in Loop d es i g n
The performance of a closi ng loop is determined by 3
major charact eri stics:
I . Spring properties - the amount of force it de l ivers
and the w ay the force changes as the teeth move.
2. The mo ment it generates - Control of root position
locati o n of loop - Vbend principle.
3. Additional desi gn prI nciples.
Spri ng p ro pe rties
These are determined al most tota lly by the wi re
material (st ai nl ess steel or TMA). the si ze of the wire
and the distance between the points of allachmenl.
Wires of greater inherent spr inginess o r smaller cross
sect ional area allow the use of simpler loop designs. 1l'
Root paralleli ng mo ments
A closing loop must generate not only a closing force
but al so appropriate moments to bring the root apices
together at the extraction si tes. When a closing loop is
activated, it s ho ri zontal legs attempt to rise at an angle
to the plane of the arch w ire (Figure 7). The horizontal
legs are constrained by brackets and therefore deliver
a mo ment to those brackets. The moment produced by
a closing loop dur ing activat ion is termed act ivation or
Inherent M oment. The aCli vat io n mo ment is dependent
on the change in angle that the horizont al arms of the
loop make w ith the bracket ... vhen a loop i s pulled apart.
The rati o of these momeni S to the activation iorce i s
termed inherent M/F, a constant for any gi ven loop
geometry. I nherent M / F increases as l oop h eight
i ncreases. Because of int raoral anatomi c limitations.
loops cannot be made w ith enough height to achieve
i nherent M/F to transl ate individual Leeth or groups of
teeth. To achi eve a hi gher I\lVF ral io. an angulation or
Figure 7: Activ.ated vertical clOSI ng loops.
Sivakumar ~ al
.. 1 gabl e type b end must be put i n t h e l oop. The
additional moment prod uced by gabling in a I<x>p is
termed residual moment. To achi eve net translation,
residual mo ments in the form of gable bends or anterior
lingual root torque and posterior gable bend must be
added. Adding these residual moments has several
disadvantages:
,. The teeth must cycle through controlled l ipping to
translat ion to rool movem ent to achi eve net
transl ation.
2. Whenever residual moments are added. the loop's
neutral position (zero activation posi tion) becomes
ill defi ned. making i t difficul t to achieve proper
acti va ti o ns.
3. The resulting everchang ing periodontal slress
distr ibuti o ns may no t yield the most rapid, least
traumatic method of space closure.
Two principl es to remember in obtaini ng a constant rvv
F rali o are ( 1) use as high an activation moment and as
Iowa residual moment as possi ble. and (2) lower the
fo rce - defl ecti on and moment - deflection rates."
If a closing loop design capable of ach ieving inherent.
constant M/ F of 8 to 9 mm w ithout residual moments
were available. en masse space closure with uniform
periodontal stress distributions could be achi eved. I! "
Th e Gabl e bend and N eutra l Posi ti o n
It has been shown that the M/F ratios resulting from
activating various loop conri gurations are insufficient
to prevent uncontroll ed tipping unless Gable bends are
included.'" When Gable bends are p laced in the
occlusal port ion of a vert ical loop configurati o n, an
unintended mesiodistal fo rce i s introduced (Figure
B).This force will alter the d esired mesiodistal force
originall y intended because of the cross over of the
verti cal legs. Thi s cross o ver iore shortens the horizontal
w ire length between the brackets. Burslone et al have
\ ~
Figure 8 : Vertica l loop containing Gable bends i n position ..
wi th subsequent verti cal l eg crossing over.
105
-' /
/L
shown that the neutral position of the loop confi gurati o n
has been altered by the introduction of Gable be nds.
14
The Neutral Position can be defined as the ho ri zontal
separation of the vertical legs of the spring before the
int roduction of a hori zont al or mesiodi stal force. It has
been shown that appropriat e ma g nitudes a nd
occlusogingival locat io ns of the Gable bends are vital
to maintain the neutral posi tion of the closing loop.
Otherwise the clinician has no meaningful reference
point from which to judge the spring's activation to
obtain the force aspect in the M/F ralio (Fi gure 9). 15
Location of the loop

I
I
I
I
I
1
..i
-
I
c/

I i
I
I
'----" -+-z.-0
!

!
I

I

Figure 9: Occlusogingival positi ons or Gable bends.
Because of its gable bends, the closing loop functions
as a V-bend in the arch wire. With greater eccentri c ity
at one of the brackets, a l arger M/F could be produced.
Prac tically, thi s means that during canine retract ion,
with the verti cal loop placed closer to the canine, a
higher ratio would be present on the canine which could
better control the apex. The undesirabl e effect is
extrusion of the canine.
14
If o nl y anterior retract io n is necessary, the retraction
loop should be placed closer to the canine than to the
molar, and a gabl e bend should be added near the mo lar.
A gable bend that is larger in the posterior dimension
w ill produce a larger beta moment, thus, increasing
the posterior anchorage. For both retr action of the
anterior segment and protrac tion of the post e rior
segment, the loop should be placed mid way between
the posterior and anterior segments. A gable bend of
equal dimensions should be used, so that the alpha and
t06
J Ind Ort hod Soc 2006; 39: 1 0 I' 09
bela mo ments are equal and reciprocal space cl osure
occurs. When o nl y poster ior protraction is desired , the
loop should be locat ed closer to the posterior segmenl.
16
Regard less of the initial magnitudes of the alfa and beta
moment s, c hanges in magnitudes wi ll occur during
retrac tion . As the anterior teeth are retrac t ed , the
magnitude of the alfa mome nt decreases faster than
that of the b e l a mome nt , e nhan c in g post e ri o r
anchorage.
101
The alb moment differential o btained by
eccentri c posit ioning underscores the importance of
careful clinical placement of the positi o n o f l oop
placement.
Additi onal design conside rations
1. The loop should be #fail safe# - This means that,
although a reasonable range of action is desired from
each activation, tooth movement sho uld stop aft er
a prescr ibed range of movement.
2. Design sho uld be as simpl e as possible.
3. Open verses closed retraction loops.
A loop is more effective when closed (lower load /
defl ection rate) rather than opened during act i vation.
On the other hand, a loop deSigned t o be opened can
be made so that w hen it closes complete l y, the verti cal
legs come into contact, effectivel y preventing further
movement and producing a desired fail safe effect.
Ricketts' m axillary canine retractor
It i s a combinat ion of a double closed heli x and an
extended crossed 'T'. The retractor is fabricated using
.016" .016" blue e lgil oy w ire(Figure 10A). In criti cal
anchorage cases, 4 5 gable bends and 30-50 glmm
ac tivati o n i s r ecomme nd ed .
1 7
For lowe r ca nine
retraction, doubl e closed helix is used. Thi s deli vers
SOglmm of activation (Figure 10B).
PG Spring
If offers excell ent control of forces and moments and is
the most effective c urrent design. This retrac tor i s
A. Maxillary cuspid ret ractor. B. Mandibular cupid retractor
Figure 10: Ricketts retractor.
fabricated usi ng .O 16" .022"stainle steel wire (Figure
II LThe design consi ts of double ovoi d speciali zed
spring with a small loop occlusall y in order to lower
the level of activation in the brackets in the short arm.
About 30 Sweep was incorporated into the di stal leg
and mesial leg was angulated by I S ."
Drum spri ng
The spring consi sts of 4 parts namely a constant force
spring, a drum, a spring box, and a central pin soldered
/
2Tm
I
I
---------------------
20Tm
Figure t I : tdeal design of the PC spring.
to the molar band. It is acti vated by pulling the end of
Ihe spring. The force level is always 50g and doesn't
vary wit h the amount of retract ion. It provides a
continuous and constant force resulting in faster space
closure compared to conventional closed coil springs. "
Nili cani ne retracti on spring
The spri ng is available in 016 x 022 NiTi wire with
anli ti p and antirotation incorporated.Abil it y to deliver
continuous forces and moments over a broad range of
act ivalion.
ln
T - loop
Segmented T- Ioop
These specialized springs are engaged in t he
allachments only at thei r ends. These springs are tlrst
bend into their passive shape in re lat ion to the
allachments and then permanent ly deformed by
incorporati on suitable bends (preactivati on bends) to
Sivakumar e( al
apply the requi red force system to the tooth or teeth to
be moved
Burstone 017 x 025 TMA T-loop
This new shape is call ed preactivation or deactivation
shape. When the preacti vated spring is engaged into
the attachment it convert s into the acti vation shap .
Differential anchorage is obtained by the applicati on
of unequal alfa and beta moments. The higher moment
i s appli ed to the anchorage teeth. Previously, the
approach described for achievi ng di iferential alb
moments with segmented T-loops used asymmetri c
angulation of the preactivation bends. The present trend
is that the off center positioning with a symmetric shape
is used to achi eve a moment differenti al, and not spri ng
shape."
The T- loop (017 x025 TMAI is designed for an activati on
oi up to 6 mm. At a full 6 mm activati on, toolh
movement occurs in 3 phases -tipping, translati on and
root movement. The spring is positioned closer to the
anchorage teeth. Cli ni cally. the spring usually needs
to be I to 2 mm closer to one side than to the other to
obtain a moment differenti al.Other melhods to produce
the differential moments with segmented T loops,
include composi te T-Ioop and use oi gabl e bends.
Composite rel raction spring
T loop
ThisspringconsistsofOl8" TMA loop welded to 17 x 25
TMA. Thi s spring can be used for either en masse
retraction of incisors or cani ne retraction.
Tilanium T loop Retract ion Spri ng (TILRS)
TILRS is placed in a-position for maximum retraction
of anterior segment and a 45 bend is placed i n the
posterior or b-posi tion.
Conti nuous arch T-Ioop
The T- loops, one on each si de, are made distal to the
cuspi ds. Desired alfa and beta moments are placed
anter,or and posterior to the T.loop vertical legs.
Recommended b-activation for A, B, C anchorages are
40 , 30 and 20 respecti vely."
Opus loop
This new design delivers a nonvaryi ng target M/F withi n
the range of 8.0 - 9. 1 mm inherentl y, wi thout adding
t07
//
Il, S
\--- -\ l-
~
)
t
'd -
E.
-
~ I I ....
Figure 12: Ideal design of the opus loop.
residual moments by twist or bends anywhere in the
arch w ire or loop before insertion (Figure 12). The loop
can be fabricated from 16 x 22 or 18 x 25 o r 17 x 25
TMA w ire. The design of the loop call s for an off center
positi oning w ith the loop 1.S mm from the mesi al
(canine) bracket. It i s acti vated by ti ghtening it distall y
behind the molar tube and can be adjusted to produce
maximum, moderate, or minimum incisor retraction.
n
.
ll
Ka lra Simultane ous Intrusion Retraction Spring
(K- SIR)
K-SIR is a continuous 019 x 025 TMA arc h w ire wit h
closed 7 mm x 2 mm U- loops at the extracti on sites for
en masse retracti on.{Figure 13).A 90 bend p laced in
the arch wire at the level o f U- loops creates 2 equal
and o pposite moment's, w hen centered in the extracti o n
space. A 60 V - bend located posterior to the center of
~
~
~
Figure 13: Kalra simultaneous intrusion and retraction spring
(K-SIR).
the inter brac ket distance produces an inc reased
clockwise moment o n the first molar. 2l
A st atically Determinate Retraction System [SDRSJ
Thi s nove l system con si st ed of a singl e - f o rce
cant il ever arm made of 017 x 025 TMA for acti ve
ret racti o n and a passi ve ri gid stabili z ing unit. Since
the act i ve component for space closure is a cantil ever,
it is si mple to measure the force syst em of the spring
108
J Ind Orthod Soc 2006; 39:101 - 109
w ith a force Gauge. A turn of heli x is p laced in fro nt of
the aux ili ary tube for the molar and ended w ith a hook
at its anteri o r end. A 90 bend is placed in the midd le
of the spring. The spring is acti vated 90 at the hel ix as
well .
24
The W ave Spring
This spring t akes the shape of a wave w hen extended.
A superel astic nic kel titanium alloy deli vers a relativel y
large amount of acti vati o n- about 90g of force- from an
extremely compact spring- o nl y 6mm lo ng i n its resting
st at e. The wave spring can be used in any si tuation
where a a closed-coil spring would be appropri ate for
relraclion.
2s
Conc lus ion
Frictional bi nding and the swi ng effect are the main
pro bl ems assoc i ated with sl iding mec h anics.
Theoreti cally, these can be overcome by the use of a
fricti o nless system, which includes a loop as the source
of the appli ed force. However, the f ri ctio nl ess system
fai ls to produce better resu lts in practice because of
the compl exity of loop forming and the presence of
unknown factors. In addit io n, minor errors can result i n
major differences in tooth movement, and some patients
find the loop .uncomfo rtable.
Predictable force system is a b ig advantage of retraction
with closing loop mechanics. M/F appl ied at the bracket
is the most important factor that contro ls the type of
tooth movement induced by a retraction spring. And,
load d efl ecti o n r at e i s con side red as a principle
c haracteri sti c to describe a spring for closing loop
mechanics. A recent study o n comparing the effects of
fri ction and frictionless mechanics report ed a superiority
of fri cti o n mechanics over fri cti o nless system in terms
of rotational contro l and dimensional maintenance of
the arch. Frictionless mechani cs were shown to be more
effect ive at reduc ing tipping and extru si o n . No
d i fference were found in anc h o r age c ontrol and
concluded that both mechan ics perform simil arly. 2f
Therefore, a worki ng knowledge of both friction and
frictionl ess mechanics is mandatory for a clinician.
Acknowl edgeme n ts
We express o ur sincere thanks to Mr.Umesh Acharya
for hi s wonderful artwork.
J LL'S
he
Communi cat ions
Ashima Valial han, 8DS(Pbl, DDS. MS (USA)
Professor and Head.
Director of Poslgradlldle Studies.
Department oi Orthodontics and
Dentofadal Onnopdedics
Manillal College oi Denial Sciences. Manipal,
Mani pal- 576104
e-rnall: Jvalialhan@)'ahoo.com
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