Transalveolar screw: a new concept for orthodontic anchorage.

The purpose of this article is to describe the use of a new trans-alveolar screw (TAS) as a temporary orthodontic anchorage device for the posterior maxilla, to intrude overerupted maxillary molars. To date, five consecutive patients have been treated with these newly designed screws. Intrusions achieved ranged from 2.1 and 6mm (mean 4.7 mm). The TAS is cheap, easy to place and remove by the orthodontist, has bicortical anchorage, and is loaded on both sides. The main advantage of TAS is that when placed in the maxilla to intrude upper molars, it allows application of intrusive force from both buccal and palatal aspects simultaneously, so that the line of force in relation to the center of resistance of the posterior segment, permits an in-mass intrusion, avoiding buccal tipping or rotations. Moreover the surgical procedure for inserting and removing the bicortical screw is simple and does not require any surgical flap, so complications are minimal and screws can be loaded immediately, without requiring any waiting healing period of time.