A study of need and demand for orthodontic treatment in two contrasting National Health Service regions.

A study has been made of attitudes towards the need for orthodontic treatment and its acceptability to fifth year high school pupils in two regional health authorities in England, selected because of differences in the number of orthodontists practising in the regions and in the amount of General Dental Service orthodontics undertaken in each. The respondents in both regions showed similar levels of awareness to the need for treatment, but treatment was found to be less acceptable to those in the region where less orthodontic appliance therapy was being undertaken. The differences between regions were greater in girls than boys. In both regions, girls were more aware of malocclusions than boys and were more prepared to accept treatment.