Abstract
This study aimed to design and implement amobile phone application (app) aiming to enhance the cooperation and oral hygiene of orthodontic patients. An orthodontic app named "Labkhand" was designed by ateam of orthodontists and programmers according to the needs and scheduled interventions for patients. The aim of this app was to obviate the orthodontic needs of patients by providing educational content in the form of texts and videos, oral hygiene reminders, appointment reminders, and nutrition reminders. It also enabled instant messaging and chatting between patients and dental personnel. In this study, 61patients were monitored during their orthodontic treatment procedure. All patients were evaluated using aquestionnaire with 7questions before and after a6-month treatment period. A total of 31patients were instructed to use the app, while the other 30patients received treatment without the app. The collected data were analyzed using paired t‑test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) test. While the control group's questionnaire score remained almost the same (P > 0.05), the mean questionnaire score of patients in the intervention group significantly increased after using the app compared to the baseline scores acquired before using the app (P < 0.001). The greatest improvement was noted in topics related to "reminding of appointments", "general information about orthodontic treatment", and "oral hygiene maintenance and instructions". "Quality of services" and "patient-orthodontist communication" showed the least improvement in patient satisfaction. The Labkhand orthodontic app has multiple functions and can obviate the needs of orthodontic patients easily and at alow cost.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call