Is the child oral health quality of life questionnaire sensitive to change in the context of orthodontic treatment? A brief communication.
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.
Agou
Shoroog
S
Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, 124 Edward Street, Toronto, ON, Canada. shoroog.agou@utoronto.ca
Malhotra
Monika
M
Tompson
Bryan
B
Prakash
Preeti
P
Locker
David
D
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