Evaluation of stress generation on the cortical bone and the palatal micro-implant complex during the implant-supported en masse retraction in lingual orthodontic technique using the FEM: Original research

Background. This study aimed to evaluate and analyze the distribution of stresses on the palatal micro-implants and the cortical bone at the micro-implant site with optimal orthodontic retraction force in lingual orthodontics. Methods. ANSYS 12.1 software was used to construct the finite element model of the maxillary bone, teeth and the perio-dontal ligament along with the lingual bracket set-up with wire and the micro-implant. Six- and 8-mm micro-implants were constructed. The final model consisted of 99190 nodes and 324364 elements. A 200-gram of retraction force was applied from the micro-implant to the anterior retraction hook. The micro-implant was embedded between the second premolar and the first molar. Hyper-view software was used to get the results in X-Y-Z dimensions. Results. The maximum von Mises stresses detected were 52.543 MPa for 6-mm micro-implant and 54.489 MPa for 8-mm micro-implant. Maximum stress was at the neck of the micro-implant. The 8-mm implant model showed 6×10-3 mm of lingual displacement. The least displacement of 1×10-3 mm was noticed for both the implant models in the apico-occlusal direction. The maximum von Mises stresses in the cortical bone at the micro-implant site was 18.875 MPa for 6-mm micro-implant and 21.551 MPa for 8-mm micro-implant. Conclusion. Six-mm micro-implant can be the choice for the implant-supported lingual orthodontic retraction as it produced minimal stresses on the cortical bone, and the initial stress displacements produced on the micro-implant were also minimal.