Orthodontic patient's perspective, attitude and readiness towards tele-orthodontics

• Main Authors: Md Hasidin, Nur Atiqah, Nasir, Siti Hajjar, Ismail, Azlini
• Format: Conference or Workshop Item
• Language: English
• Published: 2022
• Subjects: RK Dentistry
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/97694/13/97694_Orthodontic%20patient%27s%20perspective%2C%20attitude%20and%20readiness.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/97694/
• Institution: Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia

Introduction: Amid the COVID-19 emergency, dental clinics temporarily suspended all deferrable procedures to reduce the spread of the pathogen, and the tele-orthodontics approach was taken as an alternative to face-to-face orthodontic follow-ups. Teleorthodontics is the application of telecommunication to orthodontic treatment by using information technology, without requiring direct contact between clinician and patient. Therefore, our objective for this study is to evaluate the perspective, attitude and readiness of IIUM orthodontic patients towards tele-orthodontics. Materials and Methods: This prospective study was conducted at Kulliyyah of Dentistry involving active orthodontic patients in an orthodontic specialist clinic from January 2021 until December 2021. Online questionnaires were distributed to patients who received online consultations. Results: From 46 orthodontic patients, 82.4% of them agreed that tele-orthodontics systems were convenient for them. 82% of them agreed that tele-orthodontics should be practiced during the pandemic and 72% of them agreed that it should be practiced even after the pandemic. 89.1% of them agreed that tele-orthodontics brings benefits to them during the pandemic, and 74% of them agreed that tele-orthodontics might bring benefits even after the pandemic. Overall, there was no significant difference between sociodemographic background with the total scores of patients’ perspectives, attitude and readiness towards tele-orthodontics. Conclusion: The majority of the patients in this study showed good perspective, attitude and readiness towards tele-orthodontics and there was no significant difference between sociodemographic background with the total scores of patients’ perspectives, attitude and readiness towards tele-orthodontics.