The effect of load duration on long-term recovery of the eruptive function in the rat incisor.

The purpose of this study was to determine the long-term recovery of the normal rate of eruption of the rat incisor following application of loads of similar magnitude but of varying duration. The daily rate of eruption of the continuously growing tooth served as indicator of the functional recovery of its periodontium. The left mandibular incisor was shortened out of occlusion in 34 experimental and 16 control rats. The experimental animals were divided into groups A, B, and C, and continuous loads (19.47 g +/- 0.42 g) were applied to the shortened incisors by means of closed-coil springs for 5, 14, and 28 days, respectively. Following removal of the springs, the daily rate of eruption was measured and calculated in all 50 animals for a period of 10 weeks. The extended impairment of eruption in the experimental animals was directly proportional to the duration of loading: at 10 weeks postloading, it was present in 18%, 67%, and 100% of the rats in groups A, B, and C, respectively. The intragroup variations in the rate of eruption of individual teeth were more pronounced following short-term loading than after prolonged load application. Short-term loading proved to be least harmful regarding recovery of eruptive function.