Evaluation of the Effect of Color on Elastomeric Chain Force Decay: An In-Vitro Study

Abstract

The main purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of color on elastomeric chain force decay over different time intervals. In this study four colors (silver, red, blue and purple) compared to clear chain from three different companies (American Orthodontic, Fairfield, Matt). Fifty test specimens from each group (AO, FF, MT) were obtained where ten elastomeric chains of each color were tested for force decay over time, which resulted in one hundred and fifty elastomeric chains included in the study. The force decay was tested after 2 hours, 24 hours, 1, 2, 3 & 4 weeks. Five new spools of elastomeric chain from each of the three companies were used for the study. Fifteen rectangular wooden blocks made of two separate halves of wood were constructed to represent the framework on which 10 pairs of iron pins which were symmetrically arranged in a parallel manner 2cms apart, where the space between each parallel pair was adjusted to be 25mm which served as an average approximation of the actual distance between the midpoints of the first molar and canine brackets in a normal dentition prior to space closure.