Prevalence of Malocclusions and Treatment Needs in Mexican Adolescents using DAI: Malocclusion

Introduction.- Malocclusions are among the most frequent oral alterations, and according to the World Health Organization it’s ranked third place in terms of oral pathologies after caries and periodontal disease. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of dental malocclusions and the need for treatment in 12 to 15 year old Mexican schoolchildren old using the DAI.

Methods.- A descriptive, cross-sectional, prospective, association and correlation study was conducted in 187 schoolchildren of both sexes between 12 and 15 years of age from a public secondary school in the municipality of Monterrey. The severity of the malocclusion, as well as the need for orthodontic treatment, were measured according to the 10 components of the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI).

Results.- Of the 187 students that were evaluated, 50.3% were female and 49.7% were male, with an average age of 12.95 ± .9 years. The maxillary and mandibular irregularities were the most prevalent with 82.4 and 88.2% respectively and the need for treatment according to the DAI was 29.4%, which indicates a severe malocclusion and its treatment should be convenient. A Pearson correlation was performed to see the relationship between the age and the DAI components, where low but statistically significant correlations were found in the components of diastemas and jaw irregularities (P = .046 and .013) respectively.

Conclusion.- It was determined that dental malocclusions in junior high school students was high, with predominance in maxillary and mandibular irregularities, which indicates that half of the population requires a convenient/highly desirable and priority orthodontic treatment. Immediate orthodontic care is therefore suggested, before the last peak of growth to improve occlusal conditions and restore oral health.