Assessment: Girls could be undergoing braces excessively.
A fresh finding from the dental audit shows that data on children and teens receiving orthodontic treatment was gathered for 53,000 individuals aged eight and below over a ten-year period from 2013 to 2022. Before this, there wasn't any valid information regarding the proportion of kids with dental and jaw irregularities being treated, as mentioned by Barmer.
Christoph Straub, the director at Barmer, mentioned some possible factors contributing to this phenomenon. these include societal beauty standards, peer pressure, and parental concern. In this regard, more girls are getting treated for dental and jaw misalignments than boys.
The report showed that there are significant regional differences in the number of orthodontically treated children and teens. In Bremen, it's 46%, while in Bavaria, it's 60%. For young girls in Bavaria, the figure stands at 65%, compared to 53% in Bremen.
These differences between the states indicate the potential for overtreatment in areas with a higher percentage of orthodontic care. Straub believes that these variances might not be fully explained by dental irregularities or tooth misalignments alone. Inaccuracies in assessing the necessity for such treatments could also be the cause.
Read also:
The audit was conducted in various regions of Germany, including Berlin. The high rate of braces in Bavaria raises questions about potential overtreatment, as the figure for young girls stands at 65%. Straub suggested that Bremen, with a 46% rate, may be more appropriately evaluating the need for orthodontic treatment compared to Bavaria. This issue extends beyond these two regions, as there are concerns about girls in Germany undergoing braces excessively. Straub also pointed out that societal beauty standards, peer pressure, and parental concern could be driving this trend. Barmer, the health insurance provider, acknowledged a lack of information on dental and jaw irregularities in children and teens before the audit.
