Did video kill the radio star? Will CAD/CAM replace ‘traditional’ lingual techniques?

The two day event began with a pre-congress course delivered by Professor Kee-Joon Lee from Yonsei University in South Korea. His talk: ‘up to date lingual mechanics’, explored self-ligation, skeletal anchorage and biomechanics.

Professor Lee focused on the significance of the fundamentals of lingual orthodontics – or any orthodontic treatment – which is biomechanics, something that is all too frequently forgotten these days.  He illustrated this eloquently with cases where sectional and full arch lingual appliances were used to deliver the required tooth movement purely on a biomechanical blueprint.

In the afternoon orthodontic theory was put into action during a practical exercise where the delegates got to grips with bonding using the Hiro approach with self-ligating brackets, followed by torquing and arch wires. For the final session of the day, Professor Lee provided further inspiration by demonstrating how mini screws can extend the envelope of dento-alveolar compensation before resorting to surgery.

“I’ve known Professor Lee for over ten years, and every time I listen to his lectures I am filled with enthusiasm and inspiration. It’s the first time the BLOS conference has included a pre-congress course and the session provided an excellent warm up to the conference’s main event the following day”, commented BLOS chairman, Ian Hutchinson.