Friction in Orthodontics

CONTENTS:
• Introduction
• Friction and sliding mechanics
• Mechanism of action of friction mechanics
• Factors affecting friction – Bracket
- ligature
-force
-angulation
- archwire
- biological factor

• frictional and frictionless system

• Advantages and disadvantages of friction and frictionless systems
 INTRODUCTION

 Friction is the force that resists against the movement of one surface in
relation to another and that acts on the opposite direction of the desired
movement.

 The friction present during orthodontic sliding mechanics represents a

clinical challenge to the orthodontists because high levels of friction may
reduce the effectiveness of the mechanics, decrease tooth movement
efficiency
As two surfaces in contact slide
against each other, two components
of total force arise: the frictional force
component (F) and the normal force
component (N) perpendicular to the
contacting surfaces and to the
frictional force component.
Space closure is one of the most important steps in treatment after extraction.

Methods of space closure

based on friction
 Frictional mechanics

 When two objects in contact are forced to move on each other,

the resistant force that occurs at the contact surface opposite the
direction of movement is friction. (Nanda)

 There are two components of friction –

static and kinetic
 STATIC FRICTIONAL KINETIC FRICITIONAL
FORCE FORCE

Is the tangential force which

Tangential force that does not
acts between the sliding
cause any motion of the
surface moving at a constant
contacting parts. It reflects the
speed and it reflects the force
force necessary to initiate
necessary to perpetuate this
movement.
motion.

The coefficient of static friction is higher than that of kinetic friction

Kusy and Whitley divided resistance to sliding into 3 components:

1. Classical Friction (FR):

Friction, static or kinetic due to contact of the wire with bracket

surfaces.

► Proportional to applied force and affected by nature of

contacting surface.

► All the surfaces have irregularities and real contact occurs only
at a limited number of small spots called asperities at the surface.
 These spots carry all the load between two surfaces.

 When a tangential force is applied to cause one

material to slide past the other, the junctions begin to
shear.
At low sliding speeds, a “stick slip” phenomenon
may occur as enough force builds up to shear the
junctions and a jump occurs, then the surfaces
stick again until enough force again builds to break
them

2: Binding - created when the tooth tips or the wire flexes so that
there is contact between the wire and corners of the bracket
3: Notching - refers to the resistance
to sliding from a permanent damage
in the arch wire surface.
► Such damage can occur due to
grooves formed by a combination of
gouging and cutting into the wire
surface (as for example when hard
ceramic bracket edges cut into
archwires).
► It further hinders sliding to such
an extent that sliding may become
impossible
 Mechanism of action of friction mechanics

To move a tooth bodily, the force applied has to pass

through the center of resistance of the tooth.

► However as the force is applied at the bracket level

of the crown, the concerned tooth experiences both
force and moment.
Moment of force is created in 2 planes of space. One moment
tends to rotate the canine mesial out as the force application
is buccal to the center of resistance and the other tends to
cause distal tipping of the tooth as the point of force
application is occlusal to the center of resistance
The distal tipping contributes to the retraction by causing
binding of the arch wire, which in turn produces moment that
results in distal root movement
As the tooth uprights, the moment
decreases until the wire no longer binds.

► The crown that slides along the arch

wire again causes distal crown tipping that
again causes binding.
► This process is repeated until the tooth
is retracted or the force component is
dissipated.
 FACTORS AFFECTING FRICTIONAL
RESISTANCE DURING TOOTH
MOVEMENT

Bracket Ligature •Material •Use of Angulation • Bracket wire angulation

•Material •Width •Design and self ligating bracket
manufacturing technique •Tightness

Arch wire Force • Magnitude • Biological factor • Saliva

•Material Point of application
•Size
Properties related to bracket material

• Among orthodontic bracket materials, the greatest

friction occurs in plastic (polycarbonate), " and
ceramic brackets, and the lowest occurs in SS
brackets.
• To eliminate the drawbacks caused by the friction of
plastic—and some ceramic— brackets,
manufacturers are inserting a metal slot (eg, Clarity
[3M Unitek]) into the ceramic body.
• Monocrystalline and polycrystalline alumina are two
common ceramic bracket material structures.
 Kapila et al investigated –
• Frictional properties of Stainless steel (SS), cobalt-chromium (Co-
Cr), nickel-titanium (NiTi), and β-titanium (β -Ti) wires of several
sizes were tested in narrow single (0.050-inch), medium twin
(0.130-inch) and wide twin (0.180-inch) stainless steel brackets in
both 0.018 and 0.022-inch slots.
• frictional force  - wider brackets
• Due to the higher force of ligation - the greater stretching of
elastic ligatures on wider brackets.

.
Kapila S, Angolkar PV, Duncanson MG Jr, Nanda RS. Evaluation of friction between edgewise stainless steel brackets and orthodontic wires of four alloys. AmJ Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 1990;98:117-126.
  Drescher et al -study found narrow brackets to intensify friction by
enhancing tipping movements. This implies a preference for the
use of medium or wide brackets in arch-guided tooth movement,
particularly in cases in which excessive mesiodistal tooth
translation is required.

Drescher D, Bourauel C, Schumacher HA. Frictional forces between bracket and arch wire. AmJ Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 1989;96:397-404.
proffit
 Bracket manufacturing technique

Friction from milled brackets was found to be higher

than that from cast and sintered brackets. these
pictures showed that sintered brackets have fairly
smooth slot surfaces. The edges of cast bracket
slots are rougher than those of sintered ones. Milled
brackets, however, occasionally have sharp burs on
the edges of their slots that may affect frictional
resistance.
Wire

Lubrication by saliva

• The effect of saliva and its role as a lubricant for reducing the amount
of friction is controversial.
• Andreasen and Quevedou used human saliva in their study on
frictional resistance and found no difference with or without saliva.
They stated that the role of saliva was insignificant
Kusy et al tested the use of human saliva in their experiments on
frictional resistance. They reported that saliva only decreased
friction with (3-titanium and nickel-titanium (NiTi) archwires.
The levels registered for SS and chrome-cobalt wires were higher
than those obtained in dry state
 Tidy found that wire dimension and slot size had little effect on
friction.
Vaughan etal - The frictional forces  with rectangular wire than with
round wire, and  wire size   frictional force.

 Pizzoni - friction occurring in sliding mechanics as being influenced

by the bracket design, wire material and wire cross section.
He concluded that round wires have lesser friction than rectangular
wires

Tidy DC. Frictional forces in fixed appliances. AmJ Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 1989;96:249-254
 Material :

Garner et al (AJO-1986)
–
found significantly larger
frictional force with beta-
titanium and nitinol when
compared with stainless
steel.
Differences in surface
smoothness - account for
the differences in friction
Drescher et al - SEM study - between diverse wire materials.
• SS and Elgiloy - smooth surface texture,
• NiTi, TMA, - extensive surface roughness.
• Surface texture - friction magnitude in edgewise
mechanics.

Effective force has to increase by twofold (stainless steel) to

sixfold (TMA) to overcome bracket-to-wire friction
 Factors related to interbracket distance

As the interbracket distance increases, stiffness of the wire

decreases. For a given force, an elastic wire deflects more than
a stiffer one. The more a wire deflects, the more the tooth tips;
thus, the angle between the wire and the bracket increases,
resulting in binding and higher friction.
 Ligature

ligation methods:

Elastic modules •Wire ligatures • Self-ligating

brackets

• The tightness of the ligature and the

wire's pressure on the bracket slot
(normal force) directly affect the amount
of friction between these materials.

• Frictional forces obtained with self ligating brackets are

approximately the same as or slightly lower than those
of elastic or wire ligatures
• Wire ligatures cause less friction than elastic ones

• If the archwire is tightly ligated, there will

be high normal force, which will increase
resistance to sliding. Elastic ligatures
may be better than wire ones because
they apply a standard and more
controlled force throughout treatment.
 Berger (AJO – 1990) - an in vitro study to compare the level of force
required to move four distinct arch wires a similar distance, on six occasions,
through four ligated bracket systems and the self-ligated SPEED bracket.

 Edgewise canine twin bracket of the ‘A’company and plastic ceramic

reinforced Lexan bracket of American Orthodontics( stainless steel and
elastomeric ligation) were used in addition to the Speed bracket ( Self
ligating ), with slot dimensions of 0.022” x 0.028” for all the brackets.

Berger JL. The influence of the SPEED bracket's self-ligating design on force levels in tooth movement: A comparative in vitro study. AmJ Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 1990;97:219-228.
He observed a highly significant reduction
in the level of force required to move each
of the four arch wires a standard distance
through the self-ligation SPEED bracket
when compared with both the elastomeric
and the steel-tie ligated "A"-Company and
American Orthodontics bracket systems,
especially when either rectangular steel or
round braided arch
 Force

• As explained previously, the main reason for friction during

canine distalization is the force applied to the bracket
By reducing the amount of tipping (reducing the force), friction
can be reduced.

• It is therefore necessary to move the line of action of the

force closer to the center of resistance .
• To do this, the force can be applied to a power hook rather than at bracket level.
• Power hooks have different lengths. Even though this application can be helpful
to minimize tipping, long hooks are not practical because they may disturb the
gums.
• In practice, medium-length hooks (or Kobayashi ligatures) are preferred.

 Crimpable arch wire hooks

Crimpable arch wire hooks allow quick and

simple placement of hooks in the desired
position on the arch wire in (or) out of the
mouth.
►GRIFFIN & FERRACANE (1998) examined the effect of addition of
sandblasting and dental adhesive on the stability of the crimpable
hooks.
The combination increased the force required to dislodge the hook by a
factor of 10. The typical crimping force was found to be 18 kg.

Kobayashi hooks

Employed during canine retraction and in the

settling phase. Prefabricated ones are also
available. It can be custom made from 0.09” or
0.010” ligature wire

Griffin JT. A Laboratory evaluation of adhesively crimped surgical ball hooks.1998;13(2):169-7

 Frictionless Systems

 In the segmented arch technique, the dental arch is split into two
segments. Anterior and posterior

 In this technique, all movements are converted into a format of relationships

between two thereby simplifying the force system and providing a
predetermined and more controlled mechanism
 A force system is predictable or statically determinat

 In the segmented arch technique, long interbracket distances

make it possible to apply light and long-range forces. One can
enhance this advantage by using bendable, flexible wires with
high working range and low stiffness, such as titanium-
molybdenum alloy (TMA
 Frictional system Frictionless system
• Performed on a continuous arch • Teeth are moved as groups or
wire, including all teeth from individually with loops and selective
mechanics like incisor intrusion and
molar to molar. molar up righting are easier to perform.
• Offers a statically indeterminate • More predictable mechanics in which
mechanics. amount of force and moment are
measurable.
• Use heavy forces. • Use lighter forces as it increases the inter-
• Less chairside time is needed. bracket span and flexibility of wire.
• Loop bending requires significant time
• Straight wire causes less • Loops can cause discomfort to patient.
discomfort.
 Advantages of the frictional system

 Straight wires are easy to apply, thus requiring less chair time.

 Patient discomfort (hygiene problems, soft tissue irritation) is less

common compared with looped wires.

 Leveling can be performed easily with highly flexible NiTi wires.

The whole dental arch can be controlled with only one archwire
 Disadvantages of the frictional system

• Friction is a multifactorial phenomenon that makes mechanics

unpredictable. Any interaction between wire, brackets, and ligatures
causes friction; therefore, anchorage loss is more likely to occur with
frictional mechanics.
• Occlusal plane inclination and interocclusal relationships may need to be
controlled by intermaxillary elastics, microimplants, or headgear.
• Canine distalization along flexible archwires or excessive force
application may cause extrusion of incisors, resulting in anterior deep
bite.
• En masse retraction is difficult without headgear, which requires
considerable patient cooperation.
Advantages of the frictionless system

 Effectively increases moment-to-force ratios by means of loops.

This allows for torque control of anterior teeth during space
closure.
 Lengthens the distance between points of force application,
thereby reducing the wire's load/deflection rate and increasing
its working range.
 Offers more predictable mechanics in which amounts of force
and moment are measurable.
 Selective mechanics such as incisor intrusion and molar
uprighting are easier to perform.
Disadvantages of the frictionless system

• Loop bends require significant chair time.

• Loops can be uncomfortable for the patient and may
cause hygiene problems. Transverse control of the
canines during distalization is reduced compared with
sliding mechanics
References