Biomaterial Database

Prevalence of malocclusion and orthodontic treatment need in 10-year-old New Zealand children. 2000

M Johnson, and M Harkness

University of Otago, New Zealand.

The need for orthodontic treatment was determined in a random sample of 10-year-old Dunedin, New Zealand schoolchildren using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI); an index based on the social acceptability of dental appearance. When absent or unerupted teeth were disregarded, orthodontic treatment was considered to be "mandatory" for one-third of the children. The remaining children were almost equally divided into the three other treatment-need groups: "highly desirable", "elective", and "not necessary". The majority of the children had crowding and spacing in at least one incisor segment, and a molar occlusion other than Angle Class I. In this predominately mixed-dentition sample, more children were considered to need orthodontic treatment than older children in studies using the DAI. This raises some questions about the suitability of the DAI as a tool to assess orthodontic treatment need in mixed-dentition samples.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007180	Incisor	Any of the eight frontal teeth (four maxillary and four mandibular) having a sharp incisal edge for cutting food and a single root, which occurs in man both as a deciduous and a permanent tooth. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p820)	Incisors
D008297	Male		Males
D008310	Malocclusion	Such malposition and contact of the maxillary and mandibular teeth as to interfere with the highest efficiency during the excursive movements of the jaw that are essential for mastication. (Jablonski, Illustrated Dictionary of Dentistry, 1982)	Angle's Classification,Crossbite,Tooth Crowding,Cross Bite,Angle Classification,Angles Classification,Bite, Cross,Bites, Cross,Classification, Angle's,Cross Bites,Crossbites,Crowding, Tooth,Crowdings, Tooth,Malocclusions
D008963	Molar	The most posterior teeth on either side of the jaw, totaling eight in the deciduous dentition (2 on each side, upper and lower), and usually 12 in the permanent dentition (three on each side, upper and lower). They are grinding teeth, having large crowns and broad chewing surfaces. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992, p821)	Molars
D009520	New Zealand	A group of islands in the southwest Pacific. Its capital is Wellington. It was discovered by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642 and circumnavigated by Cook in 1769. Colonized in 1840 by the New Zealand Company, it became a British crown colony in 1840 until 1907 when colonial status was terminated. New Zealand is a partly anglicized form of the original Dutch name Nieuw Zeeland, new sea land, possibly with reference to the Dutch province of Zeeland. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p842 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p378)
D009971	Orthodontics, Corrective	The phase of orthodontics concerned with the correction of malocclusion with proper appliances and prevention of its sequelae (Jablonski's Illus. Dictionary of Dentistry).	Corrective Orthodontics
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D003818	Dentition, Mixed	The complement of teeth in the jaws after the eruption of some of the permanent teeth but before all the deciduous teeth are absent. (Boucher's Clinical Dental Terminology, 4th ed)	Dentition, Transitional,Dentitions, Mixed,Dentitions, Transitional,Mixed Dentition,Mixed Dentitions,Transitional Dentition,Transitional Dentitions
D003970	Diastema	An abnormal opening or fissure between two adjacent teeth.	Diastemata,Diastemas
D004955	Esthetics, Dental	Skills, techniques, standards, and principles used to improve the art and symmetry of the teeth and face to improve the appearance as well as the function of the teeth, mouth, and face. (From Boucher's Clinical Dental Terminology, 4th ed, p108)	Cosmetic Dentistry,Aesthetics, Dental,Dental Esthetic,Dental Esthetics,Esthetic, Dental,Cosmetic Dentistries,Dentistries, Cosmetic,Dentistry, Cosmetic