Efficiency of clearcorrect clear aligners in achieving anterior tooth movements

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency and predictability of anterior tooth movements achieved using ClearCorrect aligners.

Pre- and post-treatment digital orthodontic models of 20 patients treated with ClearCorrect aligners were retrospectively analyzed. Three angular (angulation, inclination, and rotation) and four linear (intrusion, extrusion, mesiodistal, and buccolingual translation) tooth movements were assessed for the maxillary and mandibular central and lateral incisors, as well as the canines. Achieved tooth movements were quantified for each tooth following superimposition of the pre- and post-treatment digital models using GOM Inspect Professional software, while predicted tooth movement values were obtained from ClearCorrect Doctor Portal. As the data were not normally distributed, comparisons between achieved and predicted movements were performed using the Mann-Whitney U test.

Comparison of planned and achieved tooth movements revealed accuracy values ranging from 47.27% to 90.02% for most movements in both maxillary and mandibular arches. In maxillary teeth, planned and achieved values were generally comparable across central incisors, lateral incisors, and canines; however, mesiodistal translation of maxillary lateral incisors showed a significantly lower accuracy at 55.71% (p = 0.005). In mandibular teeth, most movement parameters showed no significant differences between planned and achieved values, except for the intrusion of mandibular incisors, which showed significantly lower accuracy at 56% (p = 0.002).

ClearCorrect aligners showed moderate to high accuracy for most angular and translational movements of anterior teeth, while vertical movements, particularly intrusion and extrusion, were less predictable. Canines exhibited the greatest biomechanical stability, whereas incisors were more susceptible to variability.