The PAR index for evaluation of treatment outcomes in orthodontics: A clinical audit of 50 cases

In the context of this study, a clinical audit of cases treated by a single orthodontist was carried out to illustrate one practical application of the PAR index. Fifty pairs of dental casts taken from the patient group before and at the end of orthodontic treatment were evaluated by an orthodontist trained in the use of the PAR index. This evaluation shows that the average overall PAR score for the subjects included in the study fell from an initial value of 25.64 ± 11.73 points to 1.78 ± 2.79 points at the end of orthodontic treatment. The average reduction attributable to orthodontic treatment was 23.86 ± 0.95 points, for an average percentage reduction of 93.36 ± 9.02%. When cases were classified according to the degree of improvement suggested by the nomogram of the PAR index, 23 (46%) were in the “Improved” category after treatment, and 27 cases (54%) in the “Greatly improved” category. This adds up to a total of 100% in these two categories, with none in the “No better” or “Worse” categories. It should be recalled that a high standard of orthodontic treatment is considered to be reached when the average percentage reduction of the PAR score exceeds 70% and when the number of cases in the “Worse or no better” category is below 5%.