Dental Terminology Ch. 15

Orthodontics

Orthodontia

The study dealing with the prevention and correction of abnormally positioned or misaligned teeth

Orthodontist

A graduate dental student who has completed an additional two-three years of study in orthodontics

Centric relationship

The most retruded position of the mandibular condyle into the glenoid fossa (biting on the back teeth) aka terminal hinge position, classifications are neutroclusion, distoclusion, and mesioclusion

Neutroclusion

Class I condition in which the anteroposterior occlusal positions of the teeth or the mesiodistal positions are normal, but other malocclusion or positioning of the individual teeth occurs, such as crowding, misalignment, and crossbites

Distoclusion

Class II condition in which the mesiobuccal cusp of the maxillary first molar is anterior to the buccal groove of the mandibular first molar, resulting in an appearance of a retruded mandible, further divided into Division I and II

Division I distoclusion

Maxillary incisors protruding with a V-shaped arch instead of a U-shaped arch; overjet present

Division II distoclusion

Maxillary incisors having a lingual incline with an excessive overbite and a wider than normal arch

Mesioclusion

Class III condition, in which the mesiobuccal cusp of the maxillary first molar occludes in the interdental space of the mandibular permanent first molar’s distal cusp and the mesial cusp of the mandibular permanent second molar, resulting in an appearance of a protruded mandible

Mesioversion

Tooth is positioned more mesial than normal

Distoversion

Tooth is positioned more distal than normal

Labioversion

Anterior tooth positioned outside the arch toward the lips

Buccoversion

Posterior tooth positioned toward the cheek

Linguoversion

Tooth positioned inside the arch toward the tongue

Infraversion

Tooth not fully erupted or into space

Supraversion

Tooth over erupted

Torsoversion

Tooth rotated on its axis

Transversion

Tooth in wrong order

Congenital

Present at birth

Supernumerary teeth

Many teeth, maybe above normal

Ectopic

Out of place

Open bite

Anterior teeth do not contact with each other, or no contract exists between the maxillary and mandibular posterior teeth

Overjet

Aka horizontal overbite, increased horizontal distance between the incisal edges of maxillary and the labial surfaces of the mandibular central incisors

Vertical overbite

Excessive amount of overlap of the maxillary and mandibular central incisors when they are in occlusion

Crossbite

Midsagittal alignment between central incisors not in agreement; posterior tooth crossbite can also occur when teeth do not meet correctly in the centric bite

Underjet

Maxillary incisors lingual to mandibular incisors

End-to-end

Edges of maxillary and mandibular incisors meeting each other

Preventive orthodontics

Procedures taken to preserve the integrity of a normal developing occlusion by protecting current conditions or preventing situations that would interfere with growth, such as correction of caries, poor nutrition, elimination of habits through myotherapeutic exercises, or by the placing of space maintainers in areas of missing teeth

Myotherapeutic

Muscle healing treatment

Interceptive orthodontics

Procedures taken to lessen the severity of any existing malfunctions or problems from genetic or environmental factors, such as placement or use of appliances to correct improper growth patterns

Corrective orthodontics

Procedures taken to reduce or eliminate malocclusion; treatment plans include the application of intraoral and extraoral appliances and auxiliary forces for tooth direction

Rotation

Altering the position of a tooth around its long axis

Translation

Bodily tooth movement; a change of teeth to alternate positions

Tipping

Change of a tooth position to a more upright direction

Intrusion

Movement of the tooth into the alveolus

Extrusion

Movement of the tooth out of the alveolus

Torque

Movement of the root without the movement of the crown

Banding

Placing a metal band around the entire selective tooth or teeth, brackets, tubes, hooks, springs, and other devices are placed on these bands and are used to attach push/pull pressure to the teeth movements and arch wire shaping

Direct bonding

Cementing brackets of stainless steel or gold-plated metal composite, ceramic with metal centers, or clear brackets on the surface of the tooth to attach needed pressures and arch wire forms

Indirect bonding

Placing and cementing brackets to tooth surfaces by means of tray delivery, requires 2 visits; 1 for impression taking for model construction, 2 is for cleaning, isolating, and etching teeth, then tray is received with cement on the brackets, brackets remain on the tooth

Invisalign braces

Strong plastic custom trays used in mild malocclusion cases

Lingual braces

Braces that are placed on the tongue side of the teeth

Accelerated osteogenic orthodontic treatment

Surgical orthodontic “team” approach that involves placement of a regular orthodontic apparatus on the teeth and a periodontist or oral surgeon to incise the gingiva and expose the alveolar bone, then a surgical drill is used to remove some alveolar plate and score the mandible bone surrounding the teeth, which causes osteopenia

Adjunctive orthodontics

Along with selective biomechanical movement, other procedures are taken to facilitate a proper outcome

Selective enamelplasty

removal of enamel surface

Orthognathic surgery

Surgery that combines the skills of several specialists

Open bite

Space between the upper and lower teeth when the mouth is closed

Retrognathia

Receding lower jaw or “weak chin”

Prognathia

Protruding lower jaw, extending jaw

Temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD)

Improper TMJ movement

Patient medical and dental history

Summary of health problems, dental hygiene habits, patient’s desire to follow treatment instructions, and care plan for a long time period

Clinical examination

Inspection and charting of teeth, soft-tissue condition, and biting ability

Photographs (extraoral and intraoral)

Photographic record of current condition; used to plan treatment and effective for before and after treatment status, intraoral views are used for teeth and soft tissue while extraoral views are used to determine skeletal and tissue profile

Impression taking

Impressions of both arches and a bite registration are taken for the construction of a study model to be placed on an articulator and used for study and measurements

Radiographs

Full mouth series to view tooth conditions, panoramic X-ray exposure for growth projection, cephalometric films for skeletal pattern, and possibly 3D i-CAT cone beam computerized tomography for bone depth and condition made with the appropriate dental provider before beginning orthodontic treatment

Bands

Stainless steel circles or rings that are sized and cemented around a tooth, bands are supplied as maxillary or mandibular in varying sizes, and they may be supplied with or without brackets or tubes attached

Bracket

A metal, ceramic, composite or clear resin holding device used to support and stabilize the arch wire in the mouth

Soldered

Joining of 2 metals

DB

Direct bonded

Arch wire

Horseshoe-shaped stainless steel or nickel titanium wire that may be round, rectangular, or square and removal or fixed

Buccal tubes

Support devices soldered on bands into which headgear and arch wires are inserted

Button, cleats hooks, eyelets

Devices used for support and holding power devices, elastics, and wires

Ligature

Binder or tie off, thin, stainless, steel wires used to tie on or attach arch wires and any necessary attachments

Elastics

Sized latex circles providing various pull forces or elastomeric ties for holding

Auxiliary springs

Nobel metal or stainless-steel attachment to apply directional force

Separators

(device to set aside) brass wire, steel springs, or elastomeric materials that are placed between the teeth to obtain space before placing the bands

Headgear

Device composed of facebow and traction, used to apply external force

Facebow

Stainless steel external arch bow device that is inserted into the fixed molar tubes on the maxillary first molars; the open wing ends extending from the oral cavity are connected with the prepared elastic traction strap devices

Traction device

Fitted, expandable device to be hooked onto a facebow after placement on the head, the traction device is custom made and placed to achieve desired movement of teeth

Cervical device

Circles the patient’s neck and attaches to the facebow to pull in a parallel position to retract teeth

High-pull device

Fits on top of the patient’s head and hooks in downward position, perpendicular to occlusion, to retract anterior teeth and control maxillary growth

Combination high-pull and cervical device

Traction combining both forces

Chin device

Placed on the chin; incorporates high-pull and cervical forces and is used to control mandible growth

Temporary anchoring device

(TAD) Titanium allow miniscrew microplant device inserted into the interproximal bone to supply anchorage and a traction hold point; used to upright tilted teeth, open bites, and jaw movements

Class II correction devices

Spring bar that clasps onto the buccal bracket on one end and arch wire placement on the other, the pressure generated on the mandible is constant and provides movement faster than with headgear/traction that is worn 20 or so hours a day and removed at times

Aligner

An Invisalign system of computer-imaged and computer-generated clear plastic overlay trays used with milder cases of misaligned teeth, patient wears this personal aligner tray for a designated period of weeks and then progresses to the next tray until movement has been completed, and the teeth are in position

Activator

Appliance designed to guide, change, or alter facial and jaw functions for a more favorable occlusion position

Hawley appliance

Removable, customized, acrylic and wire appliance designed to maintain newly acquired tooth position that is worn at night and sometimes during the day, newer retainers surround the teeth with clear wire, which are adjusted as need be

Crozat appliance

Removable appliance made of precious alloy with body wires, lingual arms, and a high labial arch wire (maxillary); molar clasps hold the appliance in place

Lingual retainer

Mandibular lingual bar with cuspid-to-cuspid cemented unions to maintain lower incisors in position, when extended and attached to the mandibular molar-to-molar areas, it is known as a lingual arch retainer; also termed a fixed retainer

Orthodontic tooth positioner

Customized mouth tray device constructed of soft acrylic or rubberized material surrounding the crowns of all the teeth in both jaws; worn by the patient to maintain the newly acquired tooth placement until calcification and positioning are assured, they are not adjustable and differ from Invisalign trays that cause movement

Palatal expanders

RPE (rapid palatal expanders), a fixed appliance cemented to the maxillary molar teeth with a spring insert in the palate area, the spring is activated by a key rotation to expand the applied, this expansion applies force that rapidly expands the midpalate suture and increases the size of the maxilla

Fixed space maintainer

Custom-constructed appliance attached to the remaining teeth to hold a teeth pattern or to maintain space from the premature loss of a tooth

Nightguard

Removable plastic splint worn at night to lessen the harmful effects of patient’s grinding of teeth (bruxism)

Mouth guard

Removable custom-made plastic tooth covering piece worn as protection from trauma while engaged in sport activities

Oral shield

Device that fits into the vestibule space between the teeth and the lips; helps to train and maintain lip function by correcting habits, strengthening lip action, or correcting mouth-breathing faults

Dental appliances

Specialized mouth appliances for health disorders such as sleep apnea, thumb sucking, nail biting, and tongue thrusting

Band remover pliers

Used to remove bands from teeth

Bird-beak pliers

Used to bend and shape appliance wires

Loop forming pliers

Used to form and shape loops in wires

Howe pliers

Used to make arch wire adjustment; sometimes called How pliers

Three prong pliers

Used to close or adjust clasps

Contouring pliers

Used to contour bands for concave or convex tilt

Ligature tying pliers

Used to tie or bind off ligature wires and to place elastics

Arch forming pliers

Used for bending or holding dimensional wires

Stress and tension gauge

Narrow, handheld instrument with interior 1 oz. and 4 oz. marked sliding scale; used to measure intraoral forces

Band seater

Rounded, serrated end is used to “seat” band onto a tooth

Ligature tucker

Straight-handled instrument with claw-like end that is used to guide ligatures and assist with the bending of cut wire edges

Bracket tweezers

Reverse-action, small-ended tweezers used to place direct bond brackets

Ligature cutter

Used to cut ligature wire, intraorally or extraorally

Pin and fine wire cutter

Used to cut or snip off ends of tied ligature wires