Quality of Life and Orthodontics

Over the last decade, the terms quality of life (QoL), health-related quality of life (HRQoL), and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) have been seen increasingly in the dental literature. Much of the orthodontic treatment that is undertaken on a day-to-day basis is justified on the basis of improving psychosocial well-being and OHRQoL and, with this in mind, studying quality of life in orthodontic patients has the potential to provide information about treatment needs and outcomes and to improve care in the long term. In addition, orthodontists are increasingly expected to show accountability with respect to effectiveness of orthodontic treatment and efficient use of resources. This, in turn, places more emphasis on patient-based outcome measures, including changes in OHRQoL. These factors go some way to explaining the increased research in this field in recent years.