title: The effects of Frankel's function regulator (FR-4) therapy on the treatment of Angle Class I skeletal anterior open bite malocclusion.
abstract: The present study attempts to evaluate cephalometrically the effects of Fränkel's function regulator (FR-4) appliance on the treatment of Angle Class I skeletal anterior open bite malocclusion. Forty Turkish children (26 girls and 14 boys), with Angle Class I skeletal anterior open bite, were randomly divided into two groups of 20 (13 girls and 7 boys). Patients who had not undergone treatment served as the control group, whereas a second group was treated with lip-seal training and the FR-4 appliance. Chronologic mean decimal age at initial period of the investigation was 8.7 years in the treated group, and 8.9 years in the control group. Treatment and observation periods were 2 years. Investigation was carried out on lateral cephalograms taken before and after the study period. The results indicate that a spontaneous downward and backward growth direction of the mandible observed in the control group could be changed to a upward and forward direction by FR-4 therapy. The skeletal anterior open bite was successfully corrected through upward and forward mandibular rotation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Erbay
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Uğur
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ulgen
mesh_terms: D002508:Cephalometry; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008311:Malocclusion, Angle Class I / Q000628:therapy*; D008334:Mandible / Q000254:growth & development; D017289:Orthodontic Appliances, Functional; D012399:Rotation; D012737:Sex Factors; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014716:Vertical Dimension