The effect of rewards on orthodontic patient compliance

Context: Successful orthodontic treatment requires patient compliance with respect to oral hygiene, appliance wear, and appliance and appointment maintenance. Aims: This prospective, nonrandomized clinical study aimed to determine if orthodontic patients' compliance could be improved if they were offered material rewards. Subjects and Methods: Data were gathered from 35 patients with a mean age of 14.0 years over a nine appointment period. Compliance was measured for a three appointment baseline phase followed by a six appointment reward phase when both intermediate and final rewards were offered to patients who achieved the desired scores. The patients served as their own control. Compliance was measured in four categories (oral hygiene, removable appliance wear, fixed appliance maintenance, and appointment punctuality) using the modified clinical compliance evaluation form, at each appointment. Compliance scores from the baseline phase (prescore) were compared to the scores from the reward phase (postscore). Results: Paired sample t-tests revealed no statistically significant difference in pre- and postscores. Postscores were found to have no correlation with intermediate and final rewards. Conclusions: This study concluded that tangible rewards did not significantly improve orthodontic patient compliance. Furthermore, age and gender did not significantly affect compliance scores