Prevalence of Malocclusion in Patients with Thalassemia Major: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: Iran lies in the world's thalassemia belt; accordingly, the beta‐thalassemia gene is carried by 4% of the Iranian population. Due to the dearth of research and literature available on the prevalence of malocclusions in the Iranian population with beta-thalassemia major, this study was conducted to determine the prevalence and severity of facial abnormalities among patients who were referred to Bu-Ali Sina Hospital, Sari, Iran. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 patients with thalassemia major who were referred to the care unit of Bu-Ali Sina teaching and therapeutic Hospital, Sari, Iran, in 2018. The patients were then visited by a trained dentist who had been given the necessary theoretical and practical training. Malocclusion was classified based on Angle's classification. Spacing, overcrowding, overjet, and overbite were measured, and the distances were recorded based on a checklist. Results: The prevalence of malocclusions obtained was 87.5%, which included malocclusions of Class I (34%), Class II (31%), and Classes III (22%) amongst patients. There was no significant relationship between the type of malocclusion and gender (P = 0.77). Moreover, no significant difference was observed among patients with thalassemia major and different classes of malocclusions in terms of age both in males (P = 0.49) and females (P = 0.58). Conclusions: Malocclusions are common among adolescents and adults with thalassemia, which is not associated with age or gender. Therefore, patients should be regularly visited and followed up by a dentist to manage and control their dental problems. In addition, effective and preventive measures, as well as health education should be seriously considered in these patients.