Department of Orthodontics, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
Faculty of Dentistry, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
J Orofac Orthop. 2023 Sep;84(5):311-320. doi: 10.1007/s00056-021-00370-7. Epub 2022 Jan 7.
This study aimed to design and implement a mobile phone application (app) aiming to enhance the cooperation and oral hygiene of orthodontic patients.
An orthodontic app named "Labkhand" was designed by a team 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, 61 patients were monitored during their orthodontic treatment procedure. All patients were evaluated using a questionnaire with 7 questions before and after a 6-month treatment period. A total of 31 patients were instructed to use the app, while the other 30 patients 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 a low cost.
本研究旨在设计并实施一款手机应用程序（app），以增强正畸患者的配合度和口腔卫生习惯。
正畸医生和程序员团队根据患者的需求和计划干预措施，设计了一款名为“Labkhand”的正畸 app。该应用程序旨在通过提供文本和视频形式的教育内容、口腔卫生提醒、预约提醒和营养提醒，满足患者的正畸需求。它还支持患者和牙科人员之间的即时消息和聊天。在这项研究中，有 61 名患者在正畸治疗过程中接受了监测。所有患者在治疗前和治疗后 6 个月都使用一个包含 7 个问题的问卷进行评估。其中 31 名患者被指示使用该应用程序，而另外 30 名患者则在没有应用程序的情况下接受治疗。收集的数据使用配对 t 检验和协方差分析（ANCOVA）检验进行分析。
对照组的问卷评分几乎保持不变（P>0.05），而干预组患者在使用应用程序后的问卷评分平均值与使用应用程序前的基线评分相比显著增加（P<0.001）。在与“预约提醒”、“正畸治疗一般信息”和“口腔卫生维护和指导”相关的主题方面，患者的改善最大。“服务质量”和“医患沟通”方面，患者满意度的改善最小。
Labkhand 正畸应用程序具有多种功能，可以轻松且低成本地满足正畸患者的需求。
