Development and validation of an instrument to assess the Malocclusion Severity and the Need for Orthodontic Treatment in Mixed Dentition.

• Grant number: 24/11611-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: May 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Dentistry - Social and Preventive Dentistry
• Principal Investigator: Silvia Amélia Scudeler Vedovello
• Grantee: Vanessa Cristina Ament Barbirato
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Odontologia de Piracicaba (FOP). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Mixed dentition characterizes the transition between primary and permanent dentition, permitting the most interceptive orthodontic approaches. Despite this, no index for evaluating malocclusion is recommended at this stage. This project aims to develop and validate an instrument to determine the severity of malocclusion and the need for orthodontic treatment in mixed dentition. The conceptual structure that will guide the development of the instrument will be based on clinical evaluation of the mixed dentition's first and second transitional periods. The instrument will present three domains: dentition, intra-arch relationship, and intermaxillary relationship, with the severity and need for orthodontic treatment as an outcome. In the validation phase, the instrument will be evaluated by a committee of five orthodontic experts. Initially, it will be verified whether the chosen criteria represent all malocclusions in the mixed dentition considering the agreement rate between them. Then, the Content Validity Index (CVI) will quantitatively verify the agreement of the degrees of need for orthodontic treatment attributed to the conditions. The pre-test phase will be carried out with a sample of 40 children with mixed dentition and will be conducted by researchers in the field of orthodontics.