Adolescent Patients' Treatment Motivation and Satisfaction with Orthognathic Surgery Outcomes

Adolescent patients who undergo orthognathic surgery may be particularly vulnerable to pressures from parents and peers. Such pressures can ultimately lead to dissatisfaction with the surgery outcomes.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to explore whether the degree to which adolescent patients had been (a) self motivated and energized pre-surgically by thinking about themselves after the surgery and (b) had focused on esthetic and functional changes after the surgery would be correlated with their post-surgical treatment satisfaction. In addition, it was investigated whether parents' proxy assessments of their children's pre-surgical motivation would also correlate significantly with their children's post-surgical motivation.

Methods: Questionnaire data were collected from 115 former adolescent patients and 117 parents (response rates: 41% / 42%). The patients' motivation before the surgery was assessed by determining (a) how energized they were by thoughts about themselves after the surgery, and (b) how much they had focused on the outcomes. Satisfaction was determined with the Post-Surgical Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire.

Results: The more emotionally energized the patients had been before the surgery, the more satisfied they were with the outcomes (r=.541; p<.001). The more the patients had focused on esthetic changes and improved functioning, the more satisfied they were with the outcome (r=.474; p<.001; r=.448; p<.001). The relationships between parents' perceptions of their children's motivation before the surgery and their children's treatment satisfaction followed the same pattern.

Conclusions: Adolescent patients' motivation to have orthognathic surgery clearly affected their treatment satisfaction. Younger patients' motivation prior to surgery should be considered when determining the best treatment plan for a given patient.