Ensayo doble ciego de casos clínicos: Invisalign® versus multibrackets

Abstract

This article presents the results of a double-blind clinical trial of orthodontic cases.

Two cases with similar characteristics of dental malocclusion were presented to three groups of observer orthodontists. The first case was treated with a fixed multibracket appliance with straight arch wire, and the second, with the Invisalign^® system.

The observers were shown the initial and final records of both cases and a template featuring four possible orthodontic techniques. Without knowing which technique had been used, the observers were asked to indicate the technique they believed had been employed in each of the patients.

The total number of observers was 86. The results of a statistical evaluation by a blinded investigator were cross validated and revealed that only 12.7% of the observers correctly identified the technique used in the first case and only 18.5 did so in the second.

In view of these results, we conclude that, on average, 84% of observer orthodontists fail to identify the technique used to treat a patient.