Skeletal Class III malocclusion with unilateral congenitally missing maxillary incisor treated by maxillary...

This case report describes the orthodontic treatment of a 10-year-old female patient with a combination of Angle Class III malocclusion, a missing maxillary right lateral incisor, a supernumerary tooth with a short root on the lingual side of the maxillary incisor, a skeletal Class III jaw base relationship caused by a diminutive maxilla, and retroposition of the maxilla. We chose to close the space of the missing tooth, as well as the space created by extraction of the maxillary lateral incisor, by forward movement of the canine and premolars using a maxillary protractor with edgewise appliances. As a result, both the maxillary premolars and the molars were moved mesially, and a Class II molar relationship with tight interdigitation was achieved. Our results suggest that the combination of maxillary protractor and nontorque brackets was effective not only for correcting skeletal Class III malocclusion, but also for forward movement of the maxillary posterior teeth.