Evaluation of Self-Esteem Levels in Patients Desiring Orthodontic Treatment

Objective: To evaluate the effects of dental crowding and protrusion on the self-esteem levels of patients desiring orthodontic treatment. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Orthodontics, Armed Forces Institute of Dentistry, Combined Military Hospital, Rawalpindi Pakistan, from Aug 2019 to Mar 2020. Methodology: One hundred and ten patients were included in the study. Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale was used to evaluate self-esteem levels, and the scores were correlated with the severity of malocclusion. Dental crowding and lip protrusion were evaluated on study casts and lateral cephalograms, respectively, taken during clinical examination of the patients. All the measurements were taken twice by the same operator. Results: The mean self-esteem (SE) score was highest in patients with no crowding (22.20±5.14) and lowest in cases with severe crowding (16.75±3.23). The self-esteem among various categories of crowding was statistically significant (p=0.003). No statistically significant difference in self-esteem levels was seen for lip protrusion, age, or gender. Conclusion: Patients with severe crowding had significantly lower self-esteem, while patients with nil or mild crowding had significantly higher self-esteem. This finding indicates that while being important for oral health, functional and esthetic reasons, orthodontic treatment may also have strong psychosocial benefits.