SAN JOSE, Calif., July 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Align Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALGN) today announced the award of nine research grants under the company’s eleventh Annual Research Award Program. The global interest in research of dental and orthodontic treatment continues to grow as evidenced by the increasing number of applications Align Technology receives each year from universities around the world.

“Through the academic research community, we continue to validate the clinical efficacy and benefits of clear aligner therapy with the Invisalign system in general dentistry and orthodontic treatments,” said Raj Pudipeddi, Align Technology chief innovation, product, and marketing officer and senior vice president. “These science and research findings help further our ongoing commitment to product innovation that transforms smiles and changes lives for millions of people around the world through our network of Invisalign-trained doctors.”

The Americas research award recipients for 2020 are:

• University of Alberta (Edmonton, Canada) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Tarek El-Bialy
• University of Toronto (Toronto, Canada) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Siew-Ging Gong
• Jacksonville University (Jacksonville, USA) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Tabaa Sawsan
• University of Washington (Seattle, USA) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Greg J. Huang

The European research award recipients for 2020 are:

• National Kapodistrian University of Athens (Athens, Greece) – Dr. Iosif Sifakakis
• University of Campania  (Naples, Italy) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Letizia Perillo
• University of Rome “Tor Vergata” (Rome, Italy) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Roberta Lione
• University of Turin (Turin, Italy) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Bruni Alessandro

The Asia Pacific research award recipient for 2020 is:

• Stomatology Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University (Shaanxi, China) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Yu-cheng Guo

The funded research studies cover a wide range of topics for projects seeking to better understand treatment in orthodontics and dentistry including:

• effects of orthodontic appliances on the active oral microflora,
• Invisalign treatment in adult anterior open bite patients,
• 3D changes in the nasal airway after maxillary arch expansion,
• temperature conductivity to the tooth surfaces due to light-curing during bonding,
• Invisalign First™ treatment on the transverse dimension,
• evaluating palatal volume and surface area measurements between two appliances,
• the effect of aligner wear time on gingival crevicular fluid,
• evaluating a light-curing appliance that will reduce chairside time, and
• determination of the stability of the palatal rugae in non-extraction cases, especially in the cases with molar distalization.

All award applications received were first reviewed and prioritized in a blind evaluation by an independent academic committee. The final recipients were then determined by Align Technology.

About Align Technology, Inc.

Align Technology designs and manufactures the Invisalign® system, the most advanced clear aligner system in the world, iTero® intraoral scanners and services, and CAD/CAM software. Align has helped treat over 8 million patients with the Invisalign system and is driving the evolution in digital dentistry with the iTero intraoral scanner and exocad CAD/CAM software − modernizing today’s practices by enabling enhanced digital orthodontic and restorative workflows to improve patient outcomes and practice efficiencies. Visit www.aligntech.com for more information.

For additional information about the Invisalign system or to find an Invisalign doctor in your area, please visit www.invisalign.com. For additional information about the iTero digital scanning system, please visit www.itero.com. For additional information about exocad dental CAD/CAM offerings and a list of exocad reseller partners, please visit www.exocad.com.

Source: Align Technology, Inc.