Oral health-related quality of life following orthognathic surgery for class III correction its relationship with cephalometric changes

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the cephalometric changes following orthognathic surgery for class III correction and to compare these with the changes in patient perceptions of their oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Twenty-nine severe skeletal class III patients, who were candidates for bilateral sagittal split osteotomy and Le Fort I osteotomy, completed the Persian version of the Oral Health Impact Profile OHIP-14 questionnaire before any orthodontic treatment (T0) and at 6 months after the surgery (T1). Cephalometric analyses were performed at T0 and T1 and the changes in 13 hard and soft tissue profile indices were assessed by means of the paired t-test. The correlation between facial changes following treatment and the OHIP-14 item scores were tested by Pearson correlation analysis. The increase in upper lip protrusion following surgery was correlated with an increase in OHRQoL, especially in the domains of pronouncing words, taste, and diet, as well as the total OHIP-14 score. However, the increase in upper lip length and the decrease in lower lip protrusion correlated positively with worsening of some of the OHIP items. Although orthognathic surgery led to ideal cephalometric results, the patients' OHRQoL was improved in some aspects and impaired in others.