Maxillary expansion by nickel titanium palatal expander in cleft palate patient

A Programmable Expander for Patients With Cleft Lip and Palate

“…To determine the desired arch width, we measured the maxillary intermolar and intercanine widths and compared them to the mandibular model for arch coordination (Figure 2A and B). When reprogramming the expander to the desired width, an additional overcorrection of 3 to 4 mm was added to compensate for relapse due to dental tipping as previously reported in the literature (Marzban and Nanda, 1999; Karaman, 2002; Donohue et al, 2004; Raju et al, 2014). To reprogram the appliance, the NiTi loop wire was held by 2 bird beak pliers in the corrected position and then the electric current was applied to the wire segment between the pliers.…”

“…C, Small expander prior to being reprogrammed. Description of the expander: central 0.040 00 nickel-titanium wire in form of a rounded W (NiTi loop) connected 0.036 00 stainless steel (SS) wire arms that can be adapted to the dentition (Marzban and Nanda, 1999;Raju et al, 2014). The wire of the NiTi loop is curved up in the vertical plane as well, to follow the vault of the palate.…”

“…This report describes a NiTi expander (nickel–titanium expander; Ortho Organizers, Inc, San Marcos, California) that was reprogrammed with the Bender Soarer-X machine (Tomy Incor, Tokyo, Japan) by transmitting heat through electric current to customize the expansion to the individual needs of 2 patients with CLP. Different versions of the NiTi expander are on the market and have been used in patients with and without clefts around the world (Abdoney, 1995; Karaman, 2002; Ferrario et al, 2003; Donohue et al, 2004; CG et al, 2013; Raju et al, 2014). However, no previous author has reprogrammed the NiTi expander and individualized its expansion.…”

“…Treatment of patients with a cleft lip and palate (CLP) requires a team approach with several dental and medical specialists (Pan et al, 2007;Yang et al, 2012;Raju et al, 2014). Orthodontic expansion as preparation for an alveolar bone graft (ABG) is an integral part of the treatment of patients with complete CLP.…”