Piezoelectric Tooth Aligner for Accelerated Orthodontic Tooth Movement.

In this paper, we propose a device that can induce vibration to potentially accelerate the rate of orthodontic tooth movement and thus reduce the duration of the orthodontic treatment. This is accomplished by harmonically exciting a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) piezoelectric actuators to generate vibration and hence generate cyclic loading at 30 Hz. PVDF is a popular piezoelectric polymer because of its high flexibility, biocompatibility, and low cost. Generally, application of cyclic loading (vibration) reverses bone loss, stimulates bone mass, induces cranial growth, and accelerates tooth movement. This reduce the pain experience and discomfort associated with the orthodontic treatment and also enhances the patient compliance with the treatment. Vibration has the advantage of minimal side effects in comparison to medicinal treatments. The device is attached to either a positioner or teeth aligner. The main advantage of this work is that the device can be adjusted and repositioned in a different location of the teeth aligner. We propose one device that incorporates vibration, harmonic function generation, and the housing unit for the battery and processor. Current approaches require an external device, which is relatively cumbersome to the patient. Theoretical analysis based on the distributed parameter model is utilized to justify our claim. Piezoelectric actuation behavior is simulated using Finite Element Analysis.