Changes in the morphology of the buccal alveolar bone of protruded mandibular permanent incisors secondary to orthodontic alignment.

The cephalometric radiographs of 17 children and adolescents whose orthodontic treatment involved lingual positioning of procumbent mandibular central permanent incisors were examined to determine the morphologic changes in the buccal alveolar bone that resulted from orthodontic treatment. Comparison of tracings fom radiographs taken before and after treatment indicated that the alveolar height increased in 58.8% of the cases. In these cases a significant increase in the distance from the incisal edge to the "D" point was evident (t = 2.5, p less than or equal to 0.03), whereas this dimension decreased significantly in the rest of the cases (t = 3.0, p less than or equal to 0.02). In addition, a significant positive correlation (r = 0.95) was found between the changes in the distances from the "D" point to the incisal edge and the alveolar bone height. These findings indicate that during orthodontic treatment that involves lingual positioning of procumbent teeth but no intrusion, an increase in the amount of buccal alveolar bone may take place.