Evaluation of the effect of objective treatment need, self-esteem and socioeconomic status on treatment expectations and satisfaction in orthodontic patients

Objective: To evaluate the effect of objective treatment need, self-esteem and socioeconomic status on treatment expectations and satisfaction in orthodontic patients. Individuals and Method: Questionnaires and scales of 453 patients aged 15 years and above who were admitted to our clinic between May 2019 and December 2019, who had just started treatment, continued orthodontic treatment and completed their treatment, were included in our study. A questionnaire form and the Two Dimensional Self-Esteem Scale and the Psychosocial Impact Scale of Dental Aesthetics (PIDAQ) were administered together with the Başkent University Faculty of Medicine Public Health Department. The analysis of the data was made with IBM SPSS Statistics 25.0. Results: The mean age of the patients is 19.4 ± 6.2 years. 65.8% of the patients are female (n = 297), 34.2% are male (n = 155). The average monthly household income of the patients is 6910 ± 6731 TL. 74.8% of the patients decided on their own decision for treatment. 93.8% of all patients think that aligned and aesthetic teeth will improve oral health, 61.8% that it will make school / work-life more successful, 86.1% that it will increase success in their social relations. 98.1% of the patients reported that their orthodontist was kind and gentle during the treatment. 33.6% of the patients find the treatment fees high. 95% of the patients found the treatment suitable. According to the Two Dimensional Self-Esteem Scale, an average of 31.63 points in the self-liking sub-group was obtained. In the self-competence sub-group, the average was 27.94 points. Therefore self-esteem was high. There is a positive correlation between the number of physical characteristics that the patients like and their self-liking and self-competence scores. According to the Psychosocial Impact Scale of Dental Aesthetics (PIDAQ) scores, a relationship was found between social impact and psychological impact scores and gender. Both field scores are lower in males than females which means the influence of dental esthetics is lower in males. There is a negative correlation between PIDAQ scores and the number of bodily features liked and the Two Dimensional Self-Esteem scale. There is a strong negative correlation between PIDAQ and Self-Liking subgroup. Depending on treatment stages there are significant differences between PIDAQ scores. The scores of the patients whose treatment is completed are the lowest which means the influence of dental esthetics on quality of life is lower. Conclusion: It is observed that participants are in moderate and high socioeconomic status. When the objective treatment need of the patients is evaluated, 36,4% of them have handicapping malocclusion and must be treated. Patients whose treatment is finished are very satisfied with the treatment results. The vast majority of participants in our study are generally satisfied with their physical appearance. Patients in our study are found with high self-esteem. According to the PIDAQ scale, dental aesthetics have less effect on the quality of life in male. There was a negative correlation between PIDAQ scores and the number of body features liked. Individuals with high self-esteem have lower PIDAQ scores. Dental aesthetics have the greatest effect on quality of life in patients who just started the treatment. Keywords: Self-esteem, psychosocial effect of dental aesthetics, PIDAQ, DAI, orthodontic treatment need