Assessment of Corticotomy Facilitated Tooth Movement and Changes in Alveolar Bone Thickness - A CT Scan Study

Introduction: Corticotomy is an effective method of accelerating the orthodontic treatment. The aim of this study was to compare the treatment time for the extraction space closure, between corticotomy assisted and conventional orthodontic tooth movement and to check the alveolar bone thickness before and after corticotomy procedure in the corticotomy group. Settings and Design: Cross-sectional clinical study. Materials and Methods: Twenty patients (age>15 y) requiring orthodontic treatment with upper anterior retraction in the extraction space of 1st premolar were selected and were randomised into control and corticotomy group each group consisted of 10 subjects. Pre retraction, corticotomy was performed in the maxillary anterior segment. The pre and post retraction CT scans were recorded and the thickness of the alveolar plates were measured at crestal level (S1), mid root level (S2) and apical level (S3) PreTreatment (T1). The same measurements were repeated after incisor retraction was completed PostTreatment (T2). Statistical Analysis: Student’s t-test, Pearson correlation coefficient. Results: There was a significant difference in retraction time (days) between control and corticotomy groups (p