Psychosocial Impact of Dental Esthetics in Adolescents With Malocclusion: A Patient‐Reported Study

INTRODUCTION: Malocclusion and altered dentofacial esthetics significantly influence adolescents' psychosocial well-being during a sensitive developmental period. Understanding these impacts is important for esthetic and orthodontic treatment planning. METHODS: A total of 254 adolescents from orthodontic clinics in Osijek, Rijeka, and Split completed the Malocclusion Impact Questionnaire (MIQ), the Psychosocial Impact of Dental Esthetics Questionnaire (PIDAQ), the Jaw Functional Limitation Scale (JFLS), along with Likert-type scales assessing satisfaction with dental and facial appearance and perceived need for orthodontic treatment. RESULTS: The Croatian MIQ showed a unidimensional structure with excellent internal consistency (α = 0.92). MIQ correlated strongly with PIDAQ domains (r = -0.58-0.76, p < 0.001) and the esthetic component of the IOTN as rated by both patients and orthodontists (r = 0.27 and 0.32; p < 0.001), but not with JFLS or objective malocclusion indices. Malocclusion impacts were influenced by the increased esthetic component of IOTN (6% of variance; p < 0.001), female gender (13%; p < 0.001), and increased age (3%; p = 0.011). CONCLUSION: Older female adolescents experienced a greater psychosocial impact of malocclusion. The Croatian MIQ is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing the psychosocial impact of malocclusion.