Perception of Malocclusion by Children of Different Age Groups and Its Effects on their Oral Health Related Quality of Life as Assessed by Video Recording

Aims: The aim of the study was to assess the perception of malocclusion by various age groups of children and its effect on their Oral Health Related Quality of life.

Study Design: Randomized controlled hospital based study.

Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at the Department of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry in K.L.E’s Institute of Dental Sciences Bangalore, Karnataka India, between June 2010 and July 2013.

Methodology: 62 children of the age 5-15 years of both gender were selected for the study and categorized into Malocclusion group and Control group. These groups were further divided into age groups of 5-7 years, 8-10 years and 11-14 years. Oral examination of all children was done to include in study groups. Children and parents participating in the study responded to two separate Oral Health Related Quality of Life (OHRQL) questionnaires. The children were asked to watch a funny cartoon show and a video was made. The video was cropped into still images at 25 predetermined points. Width and openness of the children’s mouth and number of teeth shown were measured during the taped sessions to assess the children’s video – based smiling patterns.

Results: There existed a negative correlation between the width of smile and number of teeth shown and the severity of malocclusion as measured by the Dental Aesthetic Index.

Conclusion: Children of the age group 8-10 years and 11-15 years suffering from malocclusion had more effects on the emotions, the self-confidence and social interaction than children of the age group 5-7 years and children belonging to the control group.