The Effect of Ovariectomy and Orchiectomy on Orthodontic Tooth Movement and Root Resorption in Wistar Rats

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Root resorption (RR) after orthodontic tooth movement (OTM) is known as a multifactorial complication of orthodontic treatments. Hormonal deficiencies and their effect on bone turnover are reported to have influences on the rate of tooth movement and root resorption.

PURPOSE

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of female and male steroid sex hormones on tooth movement and root resorption.

MATERIALS AND METHOD

Orthodontic appliances were placed on the right maxillary first molars of 10 ovariectomized female and 10 orchiectomized male Wistar rats as experimental groups and 10 female and 10 male healthy Wistar rats as control groups. NiTi closed-coil springs (9mm, Medium, 011"×.030", Ortho Technology(®); Tampa, Florida) were placed between the right incisors and the first right maxillary molars to induce tipping movement in the first molars with the application of a 60g force. After 21 days, the rats were sacrificed and tooth movement was measured by using a digital caliper (Guanglu, China). Orthodontic induced root resorption (OIRR) was assessed by histomorphometric analysis after hematoxylin and eosin staining of sections of the mesial root.

RESULTS

The rate of tooth movement was significantly higher in all female rats, with the root resorption being lower in the experimental group. The rate of tooth movement in experimental male rats was significantly higher than the control group (p= 0.001) and the rate of root resorption was significantly lower in the experimental group (p= 0.001).

CONCLUSION

It seems that alterations in plasma levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone hormones can influence the rate of OTM and RR. The acceleration in tooth movement increased OTM and decreased RR.

In Vitro Comparison of Compressive and Tensile Strengths ofAcrylic Resins Reinforced by Silver Nanoparticles at 2% and0.2% Concentrations

Background and aims. Polymethyl methacrylate, PMMA, is widely used in prosthodontics for fabrication of removable prostheses. This study was undertaken to investigate the effect of adding silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to PMMA at 2% and 0.2% concentrations on compressive and tensile strengths of PMMA.

Materials and methods. The silver nanoparticles were mixed with heat-cured acrylic resin in an amalgamator in two groups at 0.2 and 2 wt% of AgNPs. Eighteen 2×20×200-mm samples were prepared for tensile strength test, 12 samples containing silver nanoparticle and 6 samples for the control group. Another 18 cylindrical 25×38-mm samples were prepared for compressive strength test. Scanning electron microscopy was used to verify homogeneous distribution of particles. The powder was manually mixed with a resin monomer and then the mixture was properly blended. Before curing, the paste was packed into steel molds. After curing, the specimens were removed from the molds. One-way ANOVA was used for statistical analysis, followed by multiple comparison test (Scheffé’s test).

Results. This study showed that the mean compressive strength of PMMA reinforced with AgNPs was significantly higher than that of the unmodified PMMA (P<0.05). It was not statistically different between the two groups reinforced with AgNPs. The tensile strength was not significantly different between the 0.2% group and unmodified PMMA and it de-creased significantly after incorporation of 2% AgNPs (P<0.05).

Conclusion. Based on the results and the desirable effect of nanoparticles of silver on improvement of compressive strength of PMMA, use of this material with proper concentration in the palatal area of maxillary acrylic resin dentures is recommended.