Correcting posterior transverse inter-arch discrepancy with non-helical expander – A prospective study

Objectives: Transverse maxillary deficiency and maxillary crowding in children are problems commonly encountered and treated by orthodontists. Early treatment with palatal expansion has been recommended for children with transverse discrepancies. Slow expansion is commonly accomplished with appliances such as the W-arch or the Quad Helix. As the concept of Non-Helical Appliance (NHA) is fairly recent, the functioning of the appliance has not been verified on a large population. Hence, an attempt has been made in the present study to evaluate the expansion effect in the early mixed dentition with the new NHA. Materials and Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was conducted in a total of 15 patients. Samples were collected of the patients with mixed dentition having transverse maxillary deficiency, of both sexes reporting to the Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Rural Dental College, Loni. Necessary diagnostic records were taken. The sample group was given the Non-Helical palatal expander. Follow-ups were at one and six months. Pre- and post-treatment study models and maxillary occlusal radiographs were evaluated and compared for the arch width and arch length changes. Results: This study showed that, the non-helical palatal expander is significantly efficacious in causing maxillary expansion in relation to the variables used in this study. Discussion: The inter-canine, inter-premolar, and inter-molar width changes showed that significant amount of expansion was caused by the Non-helical expander appliance, that was comfirmed on the study models as well as the occlusal radiographs.