Geographic information system and index of orthodontic treatment need: Tools to assess orthodontic treatment needs of 12-year-old children of Mysuru District

Abstract

Introduction: The various research studies conducted in India have shown the prevalence of malocclusion ranging from 20% to 55%. Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the orthodontic treatment need of school going children of Mysuru district and to assess the perceptive need of orthodontic treatment using mapping of malocclusion. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional, descriptive survey was conducted among 12-year-old schoolgoing children of Mysuru district. The orthodontic need has been assessed with the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN), and the mapping of malocclusion has been done with the use ArcGIS software version 9.3. With SPSS Version 16, frequency, descriptive, cross-tabulations (Contingency table analysis), and Chi-square test have been applied. Results: Among 409 boys, 163 (39.9%) had a little need, whereas 125 (30.6%) had a moderate need and 121 (29.6%) had a definite need for orthodontic treatment. Among 436 girls, 190 (43.6%) had little, whereas 122 (28%) had moderate need and 124 (28.4%) had definite need for orthodontic treatment (P = 0.53). Moreover, the overall perceptive need for orthodontic treatment need was only 35.6%. Conclusion: The prevalence of malocclusion in the studied sample is 58.2%. There is a general lack of awareness regarding orthodontic treatment as assessed by esthetic component of IOTN index. This study also found that Geographic Information System is a valuable tool for mapping of malocclusion and thus must be considered for studies related to public health.

Keywords

• Dental
• esthetics
• esthetics
• malocclusion
• needs assessment
• oral health