Treatment of class II malocclusions by jumping the bite with the Herbst appliance. A cephalometric investigation.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of continuous bite jumping with the Herbst appliance on the occlusion and craniofacial growth. The material consisted of twenty growing boys with Class II, Division 1 malocclusion. Ten of the boys were treated with the Herbst appliance for 6 months. The other ten boys served as a control group. Dental casts, profile roentgenograms, and TMJ radiographs were analyzed before and after 6 months of examination. The following treatment results were found: 1. Normal occlusal conditions occurred in all patients. 2. Maxillary growth may have been inhibited or redirected. The SNA angle was reduced slightly. 3. Mandibular growth was greater than average. The SNB angle increased. 4. Mandibular length increased, probably because of condylar growth stimulation. 5. Lower facial height increased. The mandibular plane angle, however, remained unchanged. 6. The convexity of the soft- and hard-tissue profile was somewhat reduced.