Combining planned 3rd molar extractions with corticotomy and miniplate placement to reduce morbidity and expedite treatment. A case report with 3.5-year follow up

Alveolar corticotomy (ACO) is increasingly popular to accelerate orthodontic tooth movement. However, because it is an invasive surgical procedure, there is still some resistance to its use. Combining ACO with other surgical procedures is a means to employ the method without adding an additional surgical intervention. Combining surgical interventions into one surgery reduces trauma and down time for the patient and also allows clinicians to maximize treatment outcomes. This article illustrates how the anticipation of the 3rd molars extraction created a window of opportunity for the use of ACO and miniplates, to successfully and efficiently retreat a moderate skeletal Class II on a young adult patient who did not accept orthognathic surgery with orthodontics as a retreatment alternative.