FREQUENCY OF MALOCCLUSION IN GOVERNMENT HIGH SCHOOL GOING CHILDREN AGED 13-17 IN PESHAWAR

Objective: To determine the frequency of malocclusion in Govt. high school children of District Peshawar. Materials and Methods: About eight hundred and fifty school children of both genders were randomly selected through random cluster sampling, from Government High Schools of District Peshawar. The study participants were examined in their school staff rooms using wooden spatulas, disposable gloves, millimeter ruler, and torchlight. Angle’s classification was used for recording various traits of malocclusion besides overbite, overjet, maxillary midline diastema, crowding, open bite, and crossbite. A special proforma was used for recording the data. Data were analyzed using SPSS-20 while Chi-square test was applied for association. Results: A total of 850 subjects were included in the study, of which there were 600 (70%) males, and 250 (30%) were females. The mean age of the participants was 15 + 1.37 years. The overall frequency of malocclusion was 73.1%. Angle’s class I malocclusion had the highest frequency of 372 (43.8%) followed by normal occlusion 229 (26.9%), class II division 1 as 88(10.4%), class II division 2 as 59(6.9%), class III as 64(7.5%). Angle’s Class I malocclusion (43.8%) and crowding (37.9%) was more frequently found followed by normal occlusion (26.9%) among the school going children of the Peshawar, Pakistan. Conclusion: Angle’s Class I malocclusion and crowding were more frequently found, followed by normal occlusion among the school going children of the Peshawar, Pakistan.