Download Orthodontic Treatment Need In Swedish And

Orthodontic Treatment Need In Swedish And Immigrant Adolescents
Objective. Today, more than 26 per cent of children and adolescents in Sweden are of foreign
origin. Such a major change in demographics may lead to altered orthodontic treatment need.
The aims of this study were twofold: firstly to compare groups of Swedish and immigrant
12-and 13-year olds with respect to self-perceived need of orthodontic treatment and
frequency of malocclusion and to evaluate the association between these two factors;
secondly to explore the main concerns of thirteen 19-20 year-olds with poor dental aesthetics.
The subjects were grouped according to nationality: A) Sweden (270); B) Eastern/South
Eastern Europe (61); C) Asia (127).
Methods. Registrations were based on a questionnaire, a clinical examination, radiographs
and patient records. Treatment need was classified according to the Dental Health Component
of the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN-DHC). Kruskall-Wallis, x2 and logistic
regression analysis were used to evaluate differences and associations between groups and
variables. A qualitative method was applied to interview the 19-20 year olds.
Results. Self-perceived treatment need was 24, 12 and 18 per cent in group A, B and C,
respectively. Group A exhibited the greatest space deficiencies and irregularities and also the
greatest overjet. There was a strong association between self-perceived treatment need and
IOTN-DHC grades 4 and 5. Interviews of the young adults disclosed that the coping strategies
most often used to deal with poor dental aesthetics were ”minimizing the importance of
appearance” and ”avoiding showing teeth”.
Conclusions. Despite the changed demographics the overall orthodontic treatment need
remains unchanged.