Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2023 - 42

Let's Talk About That
and package aligners and passive retainers on
nonpatient days as needed. There are separate staff
in each office. We have two Juell 3D printers in each
office, which allows for rapid production and sameday
delivery of appliances as needed. Intraoral
scans are taken by all RDAs in each office. Aligners
are delivered by all RDAs in each office. We typically
print 250 models per week in our main practice and
100 models per week in our satellite.
PT: What was your impression of the AAO Winter
Meeting on IHA in January 2023?
MN: The speakers were outstanding and covered
a nice range of topics from the history of IHA,
incorporating IHA into an orthodontic practice, to
systems for becoming an exclusive IHA practice
without any corporate utilization. IHA will now become
a routine topic at all future AAO sessions, just
as corporate aligner systems have been incorporated.
IHA is now as viable an option for providing
orthodontic care as labial or lingual fixed appliances,
traditional removable appliances, or corporate
aligner companies.
We have come a long way since the 2012 AAO
Annual Session in Hawaii, where I was presenting
IHA using Orchestrate 3D software with a desktop
scanner for alginate models and an apartment
refrigerator-sized 3D systems industrial printer.
The constant between that initial IHA and current
systems is still the need for effective and efficient
biomechanics just as with fixed appliance therapy.
Again, my thanks to Drs. Nanda and Burstone for
providing me with a solid foundation.
PT: What is the future of IHA?
MN: The future of IHA will be greater incorporation as
a routine function of orthodontic practice. Corporate
practices, orthodontic service organizations (OSOs),
and group practices may develop their own central
labs or negotiate deals with existing IHA companies.
The greatest return on investment is initially with retainer
fabrication and minor tooth movement. Utilization
of IHA for routine or complex orthodontic cases
requires more equipment, planning, staffing, training,
and experience. A number of orthodontic residency
programs now include some level of IHA training. This
familiarity will facilitate the incorporation of IHA into
every type of orthodontic practice system.
The greatest disruption of existing corporate
aligner systems and adoption of IHA will come
from direct-print aligner materials. Chemical
engineers globally are researching and developing
direct-printing plastics for use in orthodontics. Dental-orthodontic
companies such as Graphy and Park
Dental Research are in competition with engineers
at universities and corporations worldwide to find
this next Holy Grail. Direct-print aligners will soon
be available and will eliminate the need to 3D-print
models and fabricate aligners via Vacuform. This will
decrease labor cost and fabrication time and potentially
decrease material cost. Same-day aligners will
become an option for IHA. Broad estimates range
from 6 months to 3 years for these products to be
available. The final hurdle of direct-print aligner
material will be their ability to move teeth with the
same or greater efficacy as our current Vacuform
materials.
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PCSO Bulletin Spring 2023
Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2023
