Age, extraction rate and jaw surgery rate in Korean orthodontic clinics and small dental hospitals

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the current data regarding age, sex, and Angle Classification of Korean orthodontic patients and influence of these factors on the tendency to undergo extraction and orthognathic surgery. METHODS: The recent trends of Korean orthodontic patients were assessed using questionnaire survey. The questionnaires were e-mailed to orthodontists who met the study criteria; 58% of the orthodontists opened the e-mails, and 27.7% replied to the e-mails. In all, the medical records of 11,340 patients who underwent orthodontic treatment at private clinics and small dental hospitals in Korea were analyzed. RESULTS: The percentage of female patients in the study sample was 69.6%, and the average age of the patients was 19.87 years. The percentage of patients who were older than 19 years was 50.2%. Class II and Class III malocclusions were noted in 33.6% and 23.6% of patients, respectively. Extraction and orthognathic surgery were performed in 60.4% and 6.9% of patients, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The results showed that there were a high percentage of adult, Class II malocclusion and extraction patients in private practices and small dental hospitals during the study period. Further, a relatively high proportion of adult patients opted to undergo orthognathic surgery.