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Updated: Aug 3, 2025
Author Spotlight: 3D Movement Assessment of Maxillary Posterior Teeth in Clear Aligner Treatment
Published on: February 23, 2024
Efficacy of upper-incisor torque control with clear aligners: a retrospective study using cone-beam computed
Ya-Ya Hong1,2, Meng-Qi Zhou1, Chao-Ying Cai1,3
1Department of Orthodontics, Stomatology Hospital, School of Stomatology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases of Zhejiang Province, Key Laboratory of Oral Biomedical Research of Zhejiang Province, Cancer Center of Zhejiang University, No. 166, Qiutao North Road, Hangzhou, 310006, Zhejiang, China.
Objectives:
The objectives of this retrospective clinical study were to evaluate the efficacy of clear aligners on upper-incisor torque control, with the expectation of providing guidance for clinics.
Materials And Methods:
Pretreatment (T0) and posttreatment (T1) cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans of 47 patients with a nonextraction treatment using clear aligners were obtained and 120 upper-incisors with torque ≥5° were selected. Voxel-based superimpositions were performed using Dolphin imaging software and achieved movements were then measured. Difference between achieved and predicted movement (DAPM) and the efficiency for upper-incisor torque were used to evaluate the torque control efficacy.
Results:
The achieved torque movement with clear aligners was lower than predicted significantly, as the mean efficiency was 46.81±33.95%. Additionally, the achieved incisor movement of the crown and root differed significantly from the predicted movement, especially root movement.
Conclusions:
Clear aligners struggle to control upper-incisor torque, particularly root movement. In that case, overcorrection is necessary to prevent torque loss.
Clinical Relevance:
Clear aligners remain a limitation on torque control and overcorrection should be considered.
