An Evaluation of Microbial Flora, Alkaline Phosphatase and IL-8 Levels in GCF of Orthodontic Patients with Self-Ligating and Conventional Brackets.

Purpose: To compare the microbial flora, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and interleukin-8 (IL-8) levels during orthodontic treatment with self-ligating brackets versus conventional brackets.

Patients And Methods: Forty patients were included in this study and distributed equally between two groups. One group received conventional edgewise brackets while the other group received DAMON self-ligating brackets.