I am pleased to share that my most recent article Etiology of Malocclusion: Contributory Factors is featured in the most recent edition of Oral Health Magazine. Oral Health has consistently proven itself willing to explore the frontiers of where the emerging scientific evidence leads us. Click below to access this article. … [Read more...]
Why The ALF Appliance? Part 5
Dear Colleague, It is logical to look for the cause of malocclusion if we wish to correct its effects. As clinicians, we are not able to do much about heredity, but from birth onwards, there are opportunities to influence craniofacial growth. Fig 1 is drawn from a bigger montage of newborns. It reminds us just how distorted the cranium and face can be at birth. Pediatricians see faces … [Read more...]
Why The ALF Appliance? Part 4
There appears to be no connection between orthodontics and this elegant construction of metal rods and stainless steel wire but in fact, there are significant clues which we can use. This is what is known as a tensegrity structure. It consists of a single continuous wire cable and struts of aluminum. The struts do not touch each other and there are no joints or levers. The … [Read more...]
Why the ALF appliance? Part 3
What happens when you start to move a tooth has been the focus of scientific study since appliances first came into use more than a century ago. There are countless articles describing the physical displacement of a tooth, the effects of compression and decompression of the periodontal tissues, the biochemistry which accompanies the process, etc. It comes as a shock to discover that the widely … [Read more...]
Why the ALF appliance? Part 2
Science now recognizes that there are two types of system in nature. One is known as a closed system and describes what happens with inorganic materials. A closed system functions like a machine. It has entropy, meaning that over time there is increasing disorder, with loss of energy and eventual breakdown. This system acts in a linear way, meaning that a force applied at point A will cause a … [Read more...]
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 6
- Next Page »
