Problem: Proclination of mandibular incisors is the most common side effect during Class II treatment using the Herbst appliance. Especially in cases where mandibular incisors are already proclined before treatment it is most desirable to prevent further proclination.
Question: Are mini-implants effective to prevent mandibular incisor proclination during Class II treatment using the Herbst appliance?
Material and Method: The study included 14 patients who were treated with the Herbst appliance for an average duration of seven month. In seven patients the Herbst appliance was connected with two adjunct mini-implants to prevent mandibular incisor protrusion. The matched control group comprised patients with the same degree of incisor proclination at the start of therapy. The duration of treatment was also comparable in both groups.
Results: Comparative analysis of the pre- and post-treatment cephalograms showed no mandibular incisor proclination in the group with mini-implants as opposed to the control group where an average proclination of 8.0 degrees was observed.
Conclusion: Within the scope of this clinical study adjunct mini-implants were effective to prevent mandibular incisor proclination during Herbst treatment.