Efficiency of using visualized treatment objectives in orthodontics

Abstract

Lateral skull radiographs are used to perform cephalometric measurements and to evaluate the skeletal component of the orthodontic anomalies. It is difficult for the patients to imagine the expected outcome of their orthodontic treatments. so visual treatment objectives (VTO) can be a significant motivating factor. It can be used to illustrate the expected growth. the outcome of orthognathic surgery and the amount of teeth movements. This study was aimed to evaluate the accuracy of the visual treatment objectives through analysis of predicted and actual treatment outcomes. The second objective was the comparison of the initial cephalometric measurements with the final ones and the visualized treatment objectives prediction accuracy. Material and methods: Using the AudaxCeph cephalometric program and Roth-Jarabak analysis, lateral skull radiographs of 27 patients were analyzed. Visual treatment objectives were assessed by modification of the dental parameters as well as of the skeletal bases where indicated. Results: Lateral skull radiographs taken after the orthodontic treatment were used to evaluate the final cephalometric measurements. Statistical comparison of the dental and skeletal measurements of the final radiographs and the visual treatment objectives did not show statistically significant differences of the most important parameters. However, the following measurements were significantly different when compared with the visual treatment objectives Ar-Go-N angle (degrees), Go-Ar distance (mm) and S-Ar / Ar-Go ratio. Conclusions: Using the VTO, the expected orthodontic outcome can be well estimated, and it can be considered an effective tool for planning.