Excellerator Series Tips: the only option for MOPs

By Propel Orthodontics

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MOPs Tips

In fact, the Excellerator Series Tips are the only products cleared by the FDA for use in MOPs.

Micro-Osteoperforation (MOPs®), often referred to as “dental dimples”, 

is a doctor administered technique used to accelerate orthodontic tooth movement. It works by amplifying patients’ natural inflammatory response to orthodontic forces. Small, barely visible dental dimples are placed along the gums where enhanced movement is needed. This prompts an accelerated rate of cellular activity and bone remodeling, thus accelerating the rate of tooth movement by as much as 62%.[1] How can something so small be so effective? The secret is in the patented tip design and the way it engages.

The diameter, length, leading edge, thread pitch and angle

are all engineered to maximize compressive torque stress, which leads to micro-fracture and increased bone remodeling. Propel’s Excellerator Series Tips are purposefully designed and manufactured with specially treated, high-grade surgical steel designed to withstand this high stress environment without fatigue or dulling. In fact, the Excellerator Series Tips are the only products cleared by the FDA for use in MOPs. The result is a quick, confident in-office treatment completed within a single visit with little to no recovery time for the patient.

Temporary Anchorage Devices (or TADs) 

may “look similar” to the casual observer but they are engineered to perform very differently from Excellerator Series Tips. TADs are designed to be the anchor point that an active tooth is pulled towards or to aid in the anchoring of a tooth/teeth against unwanted movement. TADs manufacturers have patented design features that minimize compressive torque stress preventing micro-fracture that leads to their failure.[2] Additionally, since TADs must remain in a patient’s mouth for months at a time, they are typically made from materials that will not be rejected by the human immune system. These materials, such as titanium and aluminum alloys, are much weaker than surgical steel Propel tips and are not designed to handle more than a single insertion without the risk of fracture.

Using a bur/drill to perform transmucosal MOPs is not recommended 

and may cause significant damage to a patient’s soft tissue and/or teeth. Burs, meant for cutting, shaping, and carving, are often used in cavity preparation, cosmetic detailing, etc. Burs and drills by design remove what they touch. Creating a hole using either a bur or a drill offers very little control of depth, can require grafting, and does not achieve the necessary micro-fracturing or level of biological activation that MOPs does. In fact, using a bur or drill without surgical irrigation and full flap elevation can easily lead to thermal osteonecrosis.

Excellerator Series

The Excellerator Series family consists of the Excellerator RT and PT Driver. The Excellerator RT Driver is hand operated and provides optimal control for use in micro-osteoperforation. The Excellerator PT Driver is battery operated for increased ease, speed, and comfort for use in micro-osteoperforation.

The Propel device is indicated for manually drilling holes in tissue and bone for orthodontic and dental operative procedures including: (1) initiation holes for drill bits, implants, screws, plates, and other orthodontic appliances; and (2) for use as a tool to create micro-osteoperforations. | RX only | See Instructions for Use for Full Prescribing Information.

  1. Alikhani, M., Raptis, M., Zoldan, B., Sangsuwon, C., Lee, Y. B., Alyami, B., . . . Teixeira, C. (2013). Effect of micro-osteoperforations on the rate of tooth movement. American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, 144(5), 639-648.
  2. Karanth, Divakar & Bourauel, Christopher & Abdelgader, Iman. (2016). Effect of Thread Design of Orthodontics Mini Implants on Their Stability – A Pilot Study. International Journal of Science and Engineering Investigations. 5. 24-28.

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