title: Is the child oral health quality of life questionnaire sensitive to change in the context of orthodontic treatment? A brief communication.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to assess the ability of the Child Oral Health Quality of Life Questionnaire (COHQoL) to detect change following provision of orthodontic treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Children were recruited from an orthodontic clinic just prior to starting orthodontic treatment. They completed a copy of the Child Perception Questionnaire, while their parents completed a copy of the Parents Perception Questionnaire and the Family Impact Scale. Normative outcomes were assessed using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) and the Peer Assessment Rating (PAR) index. Change scores and effect sizes were calculated for all scales.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Complete data were collected for 45 children and 26 parents. The mean age was 12.6 years (standard deviation = 1.4). There were significant pre-/posttreatment changes in DAI and PAR scores and significant changes in scores on all three questionnaires (P < 0.05). Effect sizes for the latter were moderate. Global transition judgments also confirmed pre-/posttreatment improvements in oral health and wellbeing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results provide preliminary evidence of the sensitivity to change of the COHQoL questionnaires when used with children receiving orthodontic treatment. However, the study needs to be repeated in different treatment settings and with a larger sample size in order to confirm the utility of the measure.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, 124 Edward Street, Toronto, ON, Canada. shoroog.agou@utoronto.ca
authors.forename: Shoroog
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Agou
authors.forename: Monika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Malhotra
authors.forename: Bryan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tompson
authors.forename: Preeti
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Prakash
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Locker
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D017281:Cost of Illness; D006801:Humans; D008310:Malocclusion / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D009909:Oral Health; D009970:Orthodontics; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012647:Self-Assessment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires