[Relationship of orthodontics and periodontal support]

The Authors, in the light of available data in the published literature and using their own personal experience as a basis, examine the relationship existing between orthodontia and periodontology, giving prominence to the more immediate and dynamic aspects of the comparison. An obvious cause-and-effect relationship often links the position of the teeth and the periodontal pathology; if this relationship is understood by the orthodontist, it can guide him in his choice of treatment, both where curative treatment is required but also, and more importantly, where prevention can be provided. Emphasis is placed on how serious can be the damages caused to the periodontium where the monitoring of the bacterial plaque and of the inflammation which it brings about is not sufficiently constant. Certain programs of treatment are proposed which, using orthodontal methods, can make a substantial contribution to solving periodontal problems, the kind of problems which are hard to control when traditional methods are used.