Tratamento ortodôntico em pacientes com necessidades especiais: prevalência e desafios

Abstract

For Dentistry, a patient with special needs is one who presents with one or more simple or complex alterations of physical, mental, social, biological, or behavioral etiology and requires a special, multidisciplinary approach and a differential care protocol. It is possible to notice great difficulty on the part of dental professionals in dealing with these patients due to the lack of experience and knowledge in the area, which makes it impossible to devise an individualized treatment plan and makes care more difficult and complex. The challenges are even greater in the field of Orthodontics, as it aims to correct the position of teeth and jawbones that are improperly placed, and certain conditions/aspects of people with disabilities can worsen the incidence of malocclusions and consequently necessitate orthopedic and/or orthodontic intervention. This study highlighted the prevalence and identified the main challenges of dental care for people with special needs through a Literature Review, emphasizing those special needs that are more prevalent in the oral clinical aspect and directly influencing orthodontic care.