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Updated: Aug 11, 2026
Creating Rigidly Stabilized Fractures for Assessing Intramembranous Ossification, Distraction Osteogenesis, or Healing of Critical Sized Defects
Published on: April 11, 2012
Technical factors accounting for stability of a bilateral sagittal split osteotomy advancement: wire osteosynthesis
J E Van Sickels1, C Dolce, S Keeling
1Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Kentucky College of Dentistry, Lexington 40536-0297, USA.
Objective:
Relapse after bilateral sagittal split osteotomy has been attributed to various technical factors that are inherent in the surgical procedure. The purpose of this article was to analyze technical factors that predispose to relapse when wire or rigid fixation is used.
Study Design:
Patients were randomized to either rigid or wire osteosynthesis. Cephalometric radiographs were obtained and digitized at multiple time periods before and after surgery. Data were analyzed through use of 2-sample t tests and stepwise regression analyses.
Results:
Multivariate analysis indicated that the following factors correlated with relapse: initial advancement, change in ramus in inclination, change in the mandibular plane, and fixation type.
Conclusions:
Relapse increased with the amount of initial advancement and, to a lesser extent, with control of the proximal segment and change in the mandibular plane. These factors are similar for wire osteosynthesis and rigid fixation.
