Accuracy of digital American Board of Orthodontics Discrepancy Index measurements.

Introduction: A digital analysis that is shown to be accurate will ease the demonstration of initial case complexity. To date, no literature exists on the accuracy of the digital American Board of Orthodontics Discrepancy Index (DI) calculations when applied to pretreatment digital models.

Methods: Plaster models were obtained from 45 previous patients with varying degrees of malocclusion.

A report of the ABO Resident Clinical Outcome Study (the pilot study).

Introduction: A 4-year collaborative project between the American Board of Orthodontics (ABO) and 15 American orthodontic graduate programs concluded at the ABO Clinical Examination in February 2006.

Methods: Fifty recent graduates (the pilot study group) presented cases that were treated in their graduate programs as partial fulfillment of the requirements for ABO certification. The examinees were tested by calibrated ABO examiners and required to satisfy traditional ABO standards.

The American Board of Orthodontics: Diplomate recertification.

Although some specialty certifying boards began recommending or requiring recertification of their "boarded" specialists as early as 1986, recertification is a relatively new concept for the specialty of orthodontics. In the mid 1990s, the American Board of Orthodontics (ABO) recognized that many other medical and dental specialty boards had already established voluntary or mandatory recertification policies and decided to establish its own time-limited certifying policy. After a series of field tests involving former directors, council members of the College of Diplomates of the ABO, and volunteer diplomates, the ABO instituted a recertification policy for candidates who applied for initial certification after January 1, 1998.

The ABO discrepancy index: a measure of case complexity.

A criterion for determining the acceptability of a case presented for the American Board of Orthodontics (ABO) Phase III clinical examination is case difficulty. Case difficulty can often be subjective; however, it is related to case complexity, which can be quantifiable. Over the past 5 years, the ABO has developed and field-tested a discrepancy index, made up of various clinical entities that are measurable and have generally accepted norms.