Do Australian orthodontists’ need a lateral cephalometric radiograph to diagnose malocclusions?

Australian orthodontists’ diagnosis of malocclusions with lateral cephalometric radiographs: double blind, clinical randomised equivalence trial.

Status

Completed

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12617000683336

Acronym

Enrollment

163

Registered

2017-05-12

Start date

2017-05-26

Completion date

2017-08-03

Last updated

2018-06-11

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

Lateral head radiographs are routinely prescribed to every patient who is willing to have braces to correct their abnormal teeth positions (malocclusion). However, the information gathered during a clinical examination of the patient is fundamental to determine the diagnosis of a given malocclusion. The aim of the present investigation is to test the null hypothesis that lateral head radiographs will not alter Australian Orthodontists’ diagnosis and treatment planning decisions. If the results are consistent with our hypothesis and lateral head radiographs are not a ‘must have’ diagnostic record in orthodontics, we can suggest that lateral head radiographs should not be prescribed routinely to all patients. This would alter the conventional prescription of lateral head radiographs required for orthodontic diagnosis. The omission of the lateral head radiograph from a susceptible age group would limit the amount of ionising radiation exposure.

Interventions

This randomised equivalence trial will assess the relevance of the lateral cephalometric radiograph for diagnosis and treatment planning in orthodontics. The orthodontists who are willing to join this study will be randomly allocated into two groups. One control group and one intervention group. Those in the control group will receive a questionnaire consisting of one random orthodontic case, with all diagnostic material including a lateral cephalometric radiograph. Whereas, those in the intervention group will receive a questionnaire consisting of a random orthodontic case, without the lateral cephalometric radiograph. Orthodontists will be required to give their diagnosis and treatment plan for the given case using the provided information, taking approximately 10 minutes of their time.

Study design

Allocation

Randomised controlled trial

Intervention model

Parallel

Primary purpose

Diagnosis

Masking

Blinded (masking used) (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

28 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

Current AHPRA registered specialist Orthodontists

Exclusion criteria

NA, inclusion criteria is specific.

Outcome results