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An appraisal and comparison of three methods of selecting patients for orthodontic treatment
K Emerich1, S Williams, M Bodal
1Department of Paediatric Dentistry, Medical University of Gdansk, Poland. emerich@gumed.edu.pl
Aim:
The selection of patients for orthodontic treatment is necessary where third party payment occurs. Selection can be based on one of several systems and in this report three methods are compared.
Methods:
The examination was performed on a population of 790 Polish children with a mean age of 12 years and 2 months. In this report three methods of assessment are used. The authors' specific method relates malocclusion to the estimated risk of problems arising as a result of the malocclusion itself. The IOTN score system assesses the severity of different aspects of malocclusion, thus dividing patients into 5 groups. The DAL index quantifies the aesthetic appearance of the mouth.
Results:
The results show that using our specific method, approximately 23% of patients should undergo treatment. The figure is approximately the same using the IOTN, though there is a slight difference in the actual patients chosen. The DAI results in an entirely different orthodontic treatment need.
Conclusion:
Our specific method is highly recommended.
