Efficiency vs. Duration of Force

Clinical questions such as, "Why do I need to wear the aligners full time?" and "What if I wear them only at night?" come into the discussion of the efficiency of tooth movement and the duration of the force.

Since compliance is a major discussion when it comes to the lack of treatment progress with aligners, this point cannot be overlooked. The graph shows that almost 24 hours is needed for 100% efficiency and wearing 12 hours/day reduces the efficiency to 50%. Problems ensue when patients wear aligners less than full-time and continue to advance to the next aligner with less than the desired amount of movement. This is a major reason for issues where the aligner isn't fitting.