Prediction of compliance and completion of orthodontic treatment: are quality of life measures important?

The main aim of the present investigation was to evaluate whether there is an association between completion of orthodontic treatment and quality of life measures, i.e. age, gender, socio-economic status, type of appliance and need for orthodontic treatment. The secondary aim was to evaluate whether compliance with orthodontic treatment (missed appointments and appliance breakages) was associated with age, gender, socio-economic status, or type of appliance. This was a multi-centre longitudinal observational study carried out on 144 patients (65 males and 79 females) aged 10-19 years. Baseline data were collected: patient age, gender, socio-economic status, Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN), and type of appliance. Quality of life information, including orthodontic utility values and oral aesthetic subjective impact score (OASIS), were also collected at the start of treatment. The main outcome measure was whether a patient completed treatment. Compliance was assessed by recording the number of failed appointments and appliance breakages. Multiple regression analysis was used to investigate the association between independent and dependent variables. None of the baseline variables, including quality of life measures, were associated with a patient completing treatment, or their compliance with treatment (P > 0.05). Thus, quality of life measures (utility values or OASIS) do not add to our knowledge of who may complete, or co-operate with, orthodontic treatment. In addition, neither age, gender, socio-economic status nor clinical treatment need (IOTN) were useful in helping a clinician to choose potentially co-operative patients.