[Initial attitudes to orthodontic treatment--the results of a practical and clinical questionnaire study (I)]

[The determinants of wear behavior in treatment with removable orthodontic appliances]

The interplay of significant determinants of patient appliance wear is discussed in terms of a conceptual model reflecting the current state of research in orthodontic compliance. Appliance wear is determined by treatment-related factors such as regimen and perceived comfort, as well as by external factors such as patient personality and parental attitudes. Patient attitudes are the critical link between these influences. In the focus of this article are the patient's experiences and perceptions of treatment and the way they are affected by appliance and prescribed wear. Furthermore, possible measures to enhance compliance are highlighted.

[The facial profile and personality picture in children]

Facial skeletal malformations may not only lead to impaired function, but also diminish psychosocial well-being. Negative social experiences often arise from stereotyped character judgments such as those connected with the profile of the jaw. In this study, 146 orthodontic patients aged between nine and 14 years and student control subjects judged silhouettes of typical Angle class I, II/1 and III profiles on the basis of semantic differential and sociometric choice techniques. Moreover, the satisfaction of the subjects with the appearance of their heads and bodies, as well as their self-perceived personalities, were assessed with the aid of psychological inventories. Class II/1 profiles were characterised as rather shy, reserved, and melancholic, while to class III profiles were attributed reduced social acceptance and less popularity at school. In general, judgement of the silhouette profiles proved to be independent of the judge's own profile. Thus, the existence of trait stereotypes vis-á-vis class II/1 and class III profiles can be confirmed experimentally in children, too. The impact of social stereotypes on psychological well-being, however, is likely to be modified by numerous factors, in particular by social interaction.

[The potentials and limits of orthodontic treatment for adults]

Progress in orthognathic surgery as well as the special methods now available for proper setting of osteotomic segments, diagnostic aids and therapeutic possibilities of orthodontics have considerably strengthened the case today for giving adults a combined treatment. The treatment provides patients with the requisite sense of functional and aesthetic rehabilitation. Follow-up studies confirm the success of treatment combining therapy and surgery.

[Orthodontic treatment from the patients' and parents' viewpoint--the results of a practical and clinical questionnaire study (II)]

A questionnaire investigation enrolling more than 300 orthodontic patients and their parents was conducted into the subjective appraisal of treatment means and doctor-patient-interaction. The majority of the interviewees showed a positive respectively indifferent attitude toward their treatment. As patients grow older, their views become more differentiated and critical. Impaired speaking was mentioned most frequently; psychosocial disadvantages caused by appliance wear were suggested mostly by parents. In a minor part of patients, the orthodontist's behavior was not in line with their social-emotional needs and expectations. Slight failures of adherence with prescriptions were admitted for the daytime. Parental supervision appeared to be either energetic or formal yet superficial, or insufficient respectively in one third of our cases.