Abstract

MARPE: Just the Beginning of Dentofacial Orthopedics

by Luzi Cesare

Maxillary orthopaedic expansion has a very long history and solid scientific evidence confirming its predictability and successful outcomes. The use of rapid maxillary expanders has accompanied constantly the entire history of modern orthodontics, and although the development of modern technologies and new materials has changed orthodontic protocols with the passing of the years, the concept of orthopaedic expansion remained extremely solid. One of the common side effects of the procedure, dependant on the skeletal maturity and the degree of ossification of the sutures, is transversal tooth movement (anchorage loss) occurring in parallel to the skeletal effect. With the advent of TADs and the development of the MARPE (miniscrew-assisted rapid palatal expansion) procedure, it became possible to extend the orthopaedic procedure to adolescents and young adults limiting anchorage loss and maximising treatment efficacy. Furthermore, treatment efficiency can be optimized thanks to the design of MARPE appliances combined with coordinated procedures (molar distalization, forced traction of impacted teeth, class 3 orthopaedics). All of this within the modern protocols of a full digital workflow and CAD-CAM procedures.

Learning Objectives

After this lecture, you will be able to Understand the benefits of the MARPE procedure
After this lecture, you will be able to Understand the association between MARPE and accessory procedures
After this lecture, you will be able to Understand treatment timing for orthopedics on the maxilla