Eficácia terapêutica dos alinhadores ortodônticos

: a scoping review

Abstract

Orthodontic aligners offer several advantages over traditional fixed appliances, such as acceptability, efficiency, ease of hygiene and versatility. It is important to note that they also present some limitations and challenges, such as the need for patient cooperation, difficulty in controlling the rotation and inclination of the posterior teeth, among other movements, as well as the high cost and lack of scientific evidence as to the long-term durability of the results. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the immediate effectiveness and stability of the results achieved with the use of orthodontic aligners in the treatment of dental malocclusions in a scoping review format. To this end, the research was conducted using the open-access search engine PubMed, the Cochrane databases, CAPES journals, and Medline, focusing on studies published from 2019 to 2023. The methodology followed the PRISMA guidelines and the PICO model. A total of 89 articles were analyzed and 18 were selected for a comprehensive evaluation. Among the results obtained, it was found that transparent aligners showed efficacy in correcting simple to moderate malocclusions, with less pain and impact on quality of life, achieving medium- and long-term good results. However, the reviews selected in this scoping review also revealed some limitations of transparent aligners in achieving the same results as fixed appliances in more complex treatments, requiring the use of additional resources (such as buttons, elastics, mini-implants, etc.) to do so. In this way, it can be seen that, by identifying their limitations and mastering the technique, orthodontic aligners are effective in small and medium complexity treatments and that, when used in a hybrid way with other orthodontic devices, they have the potential to achieve good results even in more complex cases, although more studies are needed to corroborate this.

Date of Award	18 Jul 2024
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Susana Falardo (Supervisor) & José Romero Souto de Sousa Júnior (Co-Supervisor)