The prevalence of malocclusion among 14-18 years old students in Shiraz

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Malocclusions are major traits whose prevalence should be noticed, by gender, among high school students to program oral health status in a society and clarify the needs and demands of this orthodontic field. METHODS: In a cross-sectional population-based study, using a stratified random cluster sampling design, a sample of 1338 students of Shiraz, aged 14-18 years from 15 high schools, located in four different regions of Shiraz was obtained and evaluated clinically for malocclusion traits. Using tongue blades, researchers studied the students under normal room illumination conditions. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of malocclusion was 23.70%. Angle’s classes I, II, and III malocclusion were observed in 12.78%, 9.94%, and 0.97% of the samples, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in the overall prevalence of malocclusion between sexes. Other malocclusion traits evaluated were edge-to-edge occlusion (4.78%), crossbite (1.93%), and open bite (1.19%). CONCLUSION: The results of this study showed a high prevalence of malocclusion class I as well as an edge to edge malocclusion trait. Considering the findings, health care officials are expected to pay more attention to oral health fields.