Anxiety and oral habits as factors associated with malocclusion

Objective: The aim of this study was to associate the presence of oral habits with anxiety and malocclusion. Methods: Cross-sectional observational study with 199 schoolchildren 6-14 years old. Malocclusion was evaluated by using the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN). Oral Habits Questionnaire and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were used to assess oral habits and anxiety. The schoolchildren were divided into two groups: mixed and permanent dentition. The associations between the outcome variable (oral habits) and the independent variables (anxiety and malocclusion) were evaluated using the Exact Fischer test and the Chi square test. Results: Of the individuals with malocclusion in permanent dentition, 77.4% reported some deleterious oral habit, and 55% of those with no malocclusion at this stage had deleterious habits. Discussion: Oral habits may be associated with the presence of malocclusion in different stages of occlusal development (mixed and permanent dentition) and may be influenced by anxiety.