Comparison of Efficacy and Rate of Alignment using Three Different Arch wires: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Aim: To compare the rate and efficiency of Niobium-Titanium-Tantalum Zirconium archwire (Gummetal), Copper Nickel Titanium archwire (CuNiTi) and conventional nickel titanium archwire (NiTi) on initial alignment. Materials And Methods: A single-center randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted in 33 fully erupted dentition patients and Little’s Irregularity Index (LII) >2 mm. Patients were randomly assigned to three groups (n=11 each) treated with 0.014-inch NiTi, CuNiTi, or Gummetal archwires. Impressions were taken at baseline (T0) and at 3-week intervals for 4 times (T1–T4). LII, Intercanine width (ICW) and intermolar width (IMW) were measured and analyzed using SPSS v20.0 with Repeated Measures ANOVA, Bonferroni post-hoc, and Chi-square tests with p value <0.05 as statistical significance. Results: All groups showed statistically significant reduction in LII from T0 to T4 (p<0.001). Group 1 showed a decrease from 3.76±0.75 to 1.02±0.53, Group 2 from 3.74±0.64 to 0.90±0.25, and Group 3 from 3.04±0.59 to 1.33±0.66. ICW increased significantly in all groups: Group 1 from 25.93±2.86 to 26.58±2.78 (p<0.001), Group 2 from 25.59±2.68 to 26.64±2.76 (p < 0.001), and Group 3 from 25.79±2.86 to 26.52±2.83 (p=0.008). IMW changes were significant in Group 2 (40.76±2.66 to 41.11±2.63, p<0.001) and Group 3 (40.95±2.61 to 41.11±2.63, p<0.001), but not in Group 1 (41.01±2.64 to 41.08±2.62, p=0.136). Intergroup comparison revealed no statistically significant difference in LII, ICW, or IMW (p≥0.051). Conclusions: CuNiTi and NiTi archwires were more effective in initial alignment and mild arch expansion than Gummetal, making them preferable for early orthodontic correction.