Does Malocclusion Severity affect the Psychosocial Impact of Dental Aesthetics among Nigerian Adolescents?

Abstract

The impact of malocclusion on the psyche of an individual could range from mild reservations about teeth appearance to debilitating anxiety about self-image and self-esteem. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychosocial impact of malocclusion, determine its association with severity of malocclusion, and assess the effect of gender, age and academic level on psychosocial impact of malocclusion in Nigerian adolescents. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a random sample of 96 adolescents with an age range of 13 to 19 years recruited from patients at a hospital dental clinic in Lagos, Nigeria. A questionnaire was administered having sociodemographic section and the English version of the standardized questionnaire measuring the Psychosocial Impact of Dental Aesthetics (PIDAQ). The participants were assessed clinically and categorized into four malocclusion severity levels based on their Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) scores. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the sample’s sociodemographic characteristics as well as the mean PIDAQ and DAI scores. Bivariate analysis (ANOVA) was used to investigate the impact of the DAI scores on the mean PIDAQ scores. The interrelation among DAI and PIDAQ was analyzed using correlation analysis. The mean PIDAQ score was 42.5 ± 11.0. Severity of malocclusion as measured by DAI had no significant effect on psychosocial impact of dental aesthetics. The total PIDAQ score and its subscales showed no significant differences (p > 0.05) by age, gender, and academic level. Malocclusion severity has no significant linear relationship with the psychosocial impact of malocclusion.