Abstract
BackgroundThe objectives of this study were to evaluate retention procedures and protocols which are used by the orthodontists in Lithuania and to identify commonly used types of dental retainers.MethodsOne hundred seven questionnaires in total with 28 multiple-choice questions were sent to all members of the Lithuanian Orthodontic Society. The questionnaire was organized into eight sections representing specific information about socio-demographic status of the respondents, selection of a retention system, details of commonly used fixed and removable retainers, the duration of the retention period, supervision of the retainers, instructions for patients, and necessity of common retention guidelines.ResultsThe overall response rate was 75.7%. All of the respondents prescribed retainers after the orthodontic therapy. More than 40% of the respondents combined fixed and removable retainers in different clinical situations, but the first-choice option after an expansion of the maxillary dental arch was the removable retainer (54.3%); meanwhile, a fixed retainer was used after a correction of any rotations of the mandibular anterior teeth (49.4%). The Hawley retainer was preferred by 90.1% of the respondents for a maxillary dental arch, and 74.1% of them preferred it for a mandibular dental arch. The most preferable fixed retainer was the retainer bonded to all six anterior teeth (in the upper dental arch—by 71.6%; in the lower one—by 80.2%). There was no consensus on the duration of a retention period. Most of the orthodontists checked up retainers three times during the first year (fixed ones—by 42.0%; removable ones—by 30.0%) and once per year after the 1-year retention period (fixed ones—by 44.4%; removable ones—by 40.7%). All orthodontists gave instructions for taking care of an orthodontic retainer. It was observed that the orthodontists with less than 10 years of experience used a protocol based on the skills learned during their postgraduate studies, while orthodontists with more than 10 years of experience used retention procedures based on their orthodontic work practice (p < 0.05).ConclusionsA combination of fixed and removable retainers was the most often used in an orthodontic retention. Evidence-based guidelines are desired for a common retention protocol.
Highlights
The objectives of this study were to evaluate retention procedures and protocols which are used by the orthodontists in Lithuania and to identify commonly used types of dental retainers
Selection of a retention system The second section examined if orthodontists used retention appliances after orthodontic treatment, which types of retainers were typically used for applied treatment, conditions or malocclusions, and factors influencing their selection of the retainer type
Instructions for patients The seventh part requested information if orthodontists gave any instructions for the patient/patient’s parents about the maintenance of removable or fixed retainers, which instructions are provided after the bonding of a fixed retainer, which oral hygiene measures are recommended for fixed retainers, and what are the recommendations in case there are some issues with retainer
Summary
The objectives of this study were to evaluate retention procedures and protocols which are used by the orthodontists in Lithuania and to identify commonly used types of dental retainers. Despite the fact that a growing number of surveys of protocols and trends in orthodontic retention that have been conducted in different countries have revealed some tendencies between the orthodontists [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11], further studies are needed for the development of a retention protocol. The main purposes of this study were to evaluate the protocols and trends used in an orthodontic practice and to identify any commonly used types of dental retainers
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