Efficiency of clear aligners with nickel titanium wires for treating mandibular incisor crowding.

Abstract

Patients who are allergic to nickel, which is present in stainless steel brackets and wires, commonly utilise clear aligners. The objective of this research was to compare the management of mandibular incisor crowding with nickel titanium (NiTi) wires and clear aligners. A random division of forty participants into two groups of twenty samples each was made. Participants in group B received transparent aligners, whereas those in group A received NiTi arch wires. We assessed malocclusion using Little's irregularity index. A survey instrument was utilised to document the degree of discomfort. Patients were routinely recalled every one, two, and three months. The mean score for groups A and B was 2.86 mm and 2.88 mm at baseline, 1.71 mm and 1.52 mm at one month, 1.02 mm and 1.23 mm at two months, and 0.72 mm and 0.48 mm at three months, respectively. The difference wasn't that big (p > 0.05). In groups A and B, the mean change in Little's irregularity index score was 1.19 mm and 1.21 mm at one month, 0.55 mm and 0.51 mm at two months, and 0.26 mm and 0.45 mm at three months, respectively. The difference wasn't that big (p > 0.05). For groups A and B, the corresponding mean discomfort scores were 2.6 and 2.3 at baseline, 2.2 and 1.8 after one month, 1.6 and 1.5 at two months, and 1.1 and 0.9 at three months. Since p > 0.05, the difference was not significant. The results of this study showed that NiTi wires and clear aligners worked just as well to treat cases of mandibular anterior crowding.