title: Cross-sectional study of malocclusion in Spanish children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was conducted to determine the orthodontic treatment need of the child population of the Valencia region of Spain, employing the DAI and the IOTN, to examine the relations between treatment need, socio-economic data and gender and to assess the diagnostic agreement between the two indices.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in a random representative sample of the schoolchild population of the Valencia region of Spain. The sample size was a total of 765 children aged 12 and 15 years at 39 schools.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The orthodontic treatment need assessed by the DAI was 21.7% at 12 years of age and 14.1% at 15 years. The orthodontic treatment need assessed by the IOTN DHC was 20.9% at 12 years of age and 12.7% at 15 years. The diagnostic agreement between the DAI and the modified IOTN was moderate, with Kappa scores of 0.426 at 12 years of age and 0.415 for the 15-year-old group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Approximately 20% of the children needed orthodontic treatment. Neither gender nor social class appeared to exert a significant influence on orthodontic treatment need.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Estomatología, Unidad de Odontología Preventiva y Comunitaria, Clínica Odontológica, C/ Gascó Oliag n 1, Cp 46010, Valencia, Spain, jose.m.almerich@uv.es.
authors.forename: José-Manuel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Almerich-Silla
authors.forename: José-María
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Montiel-Company
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bellot-Arcís
authors.forename: Neus
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Puertes-Fernández
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D061326:Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008310:Malocclusion / Q000628:therapy*; D013030:Spain