title: Desire for orthodontic treatment and associated factors among adolescents in Southern Brazil.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the prevalence of the desire for orthodontic treatment and investigate associated factors among adolescents in southern Brazil.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study was carried out with 704 adolescents aged 12 and 13 years at municipal public schools in the city of Balneário Camboriú (southern Brazil). The adolescents answered a previously tested questionnaire addressing satisfaction with their dental appearance, speech function, chewing function, and the desire for orthodontic treatment. The parents/guardians answered a questionnaire addressing satisfaction with their child's dental appearance and socioeconomic variables. A trained and calibrated orthodontist collected clinical data on malocclusion using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI). Statistical analysis was performed using multivariate Poisson regression with robust variance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of the desire for orthodontic treatment was 69.6% (490/704). In the adjusted analysis, the outcome was significantly more prevalent among girls (P < .001), those with difficulty chewing (P  =  .026), those dissatisfied with their dental appearance (P < .001), and those with greater malocclusion severity (P < .001). The following orthodontic characteristics were associated with the desire for orthodontic treatment in the multivariate model: diastema in anterior segment (P < .001), anterior maxillary irregularity (P < .001), maxillary overjet ≥6 mm (P < .001), and mandibular overjet (P  =  .047).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The desire for orthodontic treatment among 12- and 13-year-old adolescents is influenced by gender, dissatisfaction with one's dental appearance, difficulty chewing, malocclusion severity, and orthodontic characteristics. These findings should be considered together with normative indications regarding the need for orthodontic treatment in adolescents.
authors.affiliation: a Professor, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Universidade Luterana do Brasil, Canoas, Brazil.
authors.forename: Carlos Alberto
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Feldens
authors.forename: Eduardo Kenji
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Fábio Rafael
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Tessarollo
authors.forename: Luciane Quadrado
authors.initials: LQ
authors.lastname: Closs
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003970:Diastema; D004955:Esthetics, Dental; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D061326:Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need; D008297:Male; D008310:Malocclusion / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology*; D008409:Mastication / Q000502:physiology; D020380:Needs Assessment; D009971:Orthodontics, Corrective / Q000523:psychology*; D057887:Overbite / Q000523:psychology; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D012649:Self Concept; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013060:Speech / Q000502:physiology; D014505:Urban Population
keywords: Desire; Malocclusion; Motivation; Orthodontics