Orthodontic finishing positioner and method of construction

摘要

An orthodontic finishing positioner for maloccluded teeth to which are secured coupling members having portions protruding from the sides of the teeth includes a body constructed of an elastomer base material adapted to be operatively positioned about the teeth and coupling members of at least one dental arch of a patient. The positioner body is arcuate in shape and defines a recess for receiving teeth of at least one dental arch wherein the recess includes walls defining teeth-engaging surfaces shaped generally complementary to the surfaces of the teeth of the one dental arch when the teeth therein are positioned in a predetermined or idential orientation. The recess walls further defines a series of indentations disposed across the teeth-engaging surfaces wherein each indentation is shaped to nestingly accept a corresponding coupling member so that when the positioner body is operatively positioned within the patient's mouth and stretched about the teeth of the one dental arch so that the teeth thereof are operatively received by the recess of the arcuate-shaped portion and each coupling member is accepted by a corresponding indentation, the stretched body effectively grasps the teeth and acts against the teeth and the coupling member to bias the teeth of the one arch toward the predetermined orientation. The method of the invention includes the steps involved in constructing the positioner of the invention. Such construction steps include the constructing of an impression-formed model of the teeth and coupling members of the one dental arch, repositioning the teeth-simulating portions of the model to a predetermined orientation and utilizing the model, with its repositioned teeth-simulating portions, as a standard for the formation of the desired positioner.