The role of psychosocial factors in predicting orthodontic treatment outcome at the end of 1 year of active treatment

Abstract

The role of psychosocial factors in predicting orthodontic treatment outcome has not been investigated before. Thus, the current study aimed to test whether psychosocial factors, namely 'daily hassles', resiliency, and family environment, can predict orthodontic treatment outcome at the end of 1 year of active treatment. A hospital-based, prospective, longitudinal design was adopted including 145 consecutively selected 12- to 16-year-old male and female adolescents. Baseline psychosocial data were collected by a validated child self-completed questionnaire before the placement of fixed appliances. Thereafter, adolescents were followed up on a monthly basis to collect information relating to their daily hassles and treatment adherence. After 1 year of treatment, orthodontic treatment outcome was measured by the amount of improvement in occlusion achieved. Logistic regression analysis was used.The response rate was 98.6 per cent and the dropout was 5.6 per cent. Maternal support was an important predictor of improvement in occlusion. Adolescents with high levels of maternal support were more likely to achieve a high improvement in occlusion than those with low levels of maternal support (odds ratio = 3, 95 per cent confidence interval = 1.53-6.27, P = 0.002). Paternal support, maternal and paternal control, daily hassles, and resiliency were not significantly associated with improvement in occlusion (P > 0.05). The regression model confirmed the significance of maternal support as a predictor of orthodontic treatment outcome at the end of 1 year of active treatment. © 2011 The Author. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Orthodontic Society.