Efficacy of Behaviour Change Techniques to improve oral hygiene control of individuals undergoing orthodontic therapy. A systematic review

Abstract Aim This study aims to review the available evidence on the efficacy of behaviour change techniques to improve compliance in young orthodontic patients and to compare these with conventional oral hygiene instructions. Methods The review was conducted according to the PRISMA statement. PICO method was used to define eligibility criteria. Two independent reviewers performed the research, examined electronic databases (MEDLINE, Scopus and CENTRAL) and manually checked relevant journals. Only RCTs with more than 10 participants and 3 months follow‐up were included. Data extraction and their qualitative analysis were performed for included studies. Results Search strategy identified 320 articles. After screening for titles, abstracts and full texts, 10 articles were then selected for qualitative analysis. High methodological heterogeneity was present among studies and therefore no meta‐analysis was performed. Low risk of bias was detected for one study only. The most common intervention was “mobile phone communication,” which was investigated in five studies. Motivational interviewing, repeated reinforcements and visual‐aided approach were also examined. Conclusion The interest in remote control of patients compliance appears to be fruitful, nonetheless there is no consensus as to a unique treatment protocol. Every other treatment looks beneficial but higher methodological homogeneity should be sought for in future investigations.