Assessment of Need for Orthodontic Treatment in Adolescents

Author(s):

Monisha K and Aravind Kumar S*

Malocclusion has been reported to the diverse gender and age groups. Prevalence of malocclusion is high among children and adolescents. Determining the factors involved in the development of the occlusion during transitional period from primary to permanent requires knowledge and experience. Hence, early treatment of malocclusion is necessary. The aim of the study was to assess the prevalence of adolescents who are in need of orthodontic treatment. The study has been carried during the period June 2019 to April 2020 on a total of 637 patients who reported to a private dental hospital in Chennai. All case sheets of relevant data with orthodontic findings were reviewed for the study and adolescents in the age group of 14-19 years were segregated. The data was entered in SPSS and analyzed through the Chi square test. The study evaluated 20 common orthodontic findings among adolescents. From the results obtained, the number of patients who reported with orthodontic findings in the current study was majority among males than females. 35% patients with orthodontic findings were in the age group between 14-16 years and 64.5% in the age group between 17-19 years. Amongst the 20 common orthodontic findings, the most prevalent orthodontic finding was crowding. Within the limits of the study it can be concluded that crowding was the most common orthodontic finding in our study population and number of patients who reported for orthodontic treatment were majorly in males compared to females and 17-19 years of age but the study was not statistically significant.