Very early face mask therapy in Class III children.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of very early face mask therapy in children with Class III malocclusion. At pretreatment (T0), 40 female subjects who were eventually treated showed a more severe Class III pattern (ANB 0.1 degrees) than did 28 skeletal Class III female subjects who remained untreated (ANB 0.4 degrees), as observed in the Wits analysis. Posttreatment results (T1) showed significant (p<0.01) anterior advancement of the maxillary components, backward rotation of the mandible without increased lower anterior facial height, and an improved incisor relationship. Comparison of posttreatment (T1) and postretention (T2) records, however, revealed no increase in SNA in the treated group. SNA did increase in the untreated group, with no significant difference in ANB angle. The x-components of B-point and Me showed a significant (p<0.05) difference between the two groups. At postretention (T2), N-S-Ba, N-S-Ar, and CC-Ba tended to increase more in the treated group than in the untreated group.