Background and Aims: One side effect of orthodontic treatment is microcrack formation during debonding process. Since the type of ligation may affect the applied debonding force, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of ligation method on the enamel microcrack formation following debonding of orthodontic brackets.
Materials and Methods: The present study was an experimental in vitro study. 69 extracted human premolar teeth were divided into 3 groups with 23 teeth by a simple random method. A bracket was bonded on the buccal surface of the teeth, then the desired tooth was placed in a typodont where the rest of the teeth were mounted. Then, the arch wire was passively placed in the bracket slot. The samples were ligated by one of these three methods based on the study group: 1. Oring ligation 2. Tight ligation with a wire ligature for each tooth separately 3. Ligation of all arch teeth together, using a wire ligature. The buccal surfaces of the teeth were observed under a stereomicroscope and the length, location, and the number of microcracks were recorded before and after debonding process. In order to analyze the data, generalized estimating equation analysis was used.
Results: In all three groups, a significant increase was observed in the average total length and number of enamel microcracks following the debonding process. (P<0.001 in all three groups), with no statistically significant difference between the three study groups. However, it was greater in group 2 than that of groups 3 and 1 respectively. In general, the number of new cracks was more in mid-buccal area followed by cervical and occlusal areas.
Conclusion: The debonding process caused an increase in the average total length as well as the number of enamel microcracks. Type of ligation might affect the enamel microcrack formation so that in tight ligation group we had the greatest increase in the enamel damage especially in mid-buccal area of the tooth. Tight ligation method can cause more enamel cracks than O-ring ligation and full arch ligation methods.
