Voice-over:
For some Americans, fixing crooked teeth can mean a life-long commitment…wearing braces for
a couple years, and often a retention appliance for decades after that. But researchers say a
natural hormone might one day be used to shorten the time needed to straighten teeth, and
possibly even eliminate the need for the dreaded retainer.
University of Florida orthodontists say relaxin (relax-inn), a hormone women produce during pregnancy that eases baby’s passage through the birth canal, might also allow orthodontists to loosen and straighten teeth chemically, instead of with force alone. Doctors say relaxin softens the rubberband-like collagen (coll-uh-jenn) around the base of the tooth, the compound braces battle as they’re tightened and adjusted. Experts also think relaxin might help collagen fibers reorganize over the long term, preventing straightened teeth from turning crooked again once the constant pressure of braces or retainers is removed.
Dr. Timothy Wheeler / UF orthodontist:
“With the relaxin, what we’re hoping is that we can then apply the hormone to those teeth, relax
the fibers involved in the relapse of the teeth and then do away with retainers for good.”
Voice-over:
U-F researchers are currently studying the movement of a single crooked tooth in each of forty patients, to gauge relaxin’s effect over time. Half the study patients will receive a straightening appliance and a placebo solution injected into the gums weekly. The other half will get the straightening and injections of relaxin. Over the course of eight weeks, orthodontists will measure the amount of time and force it takes to move the teeth. They’ll then track how much relapse occurs after braces are removed. Experts speculate that relaxin, if it works, could cut a two-year commitment to braces in half.
Dr. Timothy Wheeler / UF orthodontist:
“To our patients time in our office is money--- inconvenience away from their job, travel time in to the office, appointment time in our office, time is money to them, and so what we’re hoping is that relaxin will improve our treatment times.”
Voice-over:
At the University of Florida Health Science Center, I’m Mike Garrison.
