%0 Journal Article
%T Assessment of the Self-Perception of Dental Appearance, Its Comparison with Orthodontist¡¯s Assessment and Demand for Treatment in Eastern Nepalese Patients
%A Varun Pratap Singh
%A Amita Sharma
%A Deepak Kumar Roy
%J Advances in Medicine
%D 2014
%R 10.1155/2014/547625
%X Aims. The aim of this study was to assess the self-perception of dental appearance among Eastern Nepalese patients using aesthetic component (AC) of the index of orthodontic treatment need (IOTN) and to compare it with that of an orthodontist¡¯s assessment using the same scale and determine whether gender, area of residence, and level of education influence subject¡¯s self-perception and orthodontist¡¯s ratings. Methods. A total of 252 subjects (equal number of male and female) were conveniently selected. The average ages of subjects were years. The level of subject¡¯s perception and orthodontist¡¯s assessment was analyzed by nonparametric Chi square test. Kappa coefficient was done to verify its agreement. The Spearman¡¯s correlation test was used to check the association of educational level and age. Mann-Whitney test was used to check the associations of sex and areas of residence. Results. The demand for treatment was significantly associated with the perception of the subject and orthodontist¡¯s assessment. However, age, gender, and educational level were statistically insignificant in influencing subject perception and orthodontist¡¯s assessment. Conclusion. Patient¡¯s self-perception should be given equal importance while planning orthodontic treatment. 1. Introduction A person having an attractive smile is appreciated by everyone. People always want to know how they look and what others think about their physical appearance. Therefore, a pleasing smile and an attractive facial appearance help to improve one¡¯s self-esteem and have a positive impact on building social as well as professional relations. One with poor dental appearance may have a negative impact [1]. Enhancing dentofacial esthetics is one of the primary goals of orthodontic treatment. Frequently, people desire orthodontic treatment to address their esthetics concerns [2, 3]. A number of studies have shown that children have developed a self-perception for the need of orthodontic treatment [3¨C10]. Orthodontic treatment is determined mostly by the objective assessment. The patient¡¯s perception toward seeking a dental treatment is usually ignored [2, 11]. The index of orthodontic treatment need (IOTN) has two components: one component relates to dental and functional health (dental health component (DHC)) and the other is based on aesthetic impairment of malocclusions (aesthetic component (AC)). The former is concerned only about dental health [12, 13] and the later deals with psychological need for orthodontic treatment [14]. The AC IOTN (Figure 1) consists of ten colorful photos of the
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/amed/2014/547625/