Biological Principles of Orthodontic Tooth Movement: A Review Article

Orthodontic tooth mobility is discussed in this article, and the numerous concepts or theories of movement of tooth and the phases through which a tooth undergoes after application of forces. The effect of orthodontic pressure exerted on the dental architecture promotes movement of tooth through remodeling, which is the growth and resorption of alveolar bone. These forces can either be light forces or heavy forces depending upon their magnitudes. Biological aspects of tooth movement changes in accordance with the magnitude, force, time span and direction of force exerted. Variations in force application can be decided based on the kind of movement of tooth desired. These forces result in complex physiological events, cellular events in the surrounding tissues and, release of various chemical mediators to re-establish the equilibrium which gets interrupted by applying forces.  Recently, many researches are going on how to enhance the speed of movement of the tooth with light forces so as to reduce the damage caused by the heavy forces, reduce the treatment time overall and treatment planning which results in minimal adverse effects.