Personalised orthodontics represents a paradigm shift from traditional, protocol-driven approaches toward treatment strategies that acknowledge the biological, functional, but also the psychosocial uniqueness of each patient. While orthodontists have traditionally emphasised occlusal outcomes and cephalometric norms, increasing evidence highlights a possible mismatch between professional goals and patient expectations, particularly regarding comfort, aesthetics, and treatment duration. This lecture will explore how treatment planning can move beyond protocol-based models by integrating skeletal and dental variables with patient-centred factors such as motivation, compliance, personality, and mental health. Clinical examples demonstrate how patients with similar malocclusions may require very different treatment approaches when both clinical variables and psychosocial background are taken into account. Special attention is given to communication strategies, the impact of dental anxiety, and the orthodontist’s potential role as an early detector of psychological distress, including eating disorders, body dysmorphic disorder, and self-harm. Finally, advances in digital health, wearable technologies, and genetic testing are critically appraised as emerging tools that may support personalised care, provided they are applied in a collaborative and patient-centred framework.


Learning Objectives
After this lecture, you will be able to define the principles of personalised orthodontics by integrating biological, functional, and psychosocial factors into treatment planning.
After this lecture, you will be able to recognize how patient expectations, personality, and mental health can influence orthodontic outcomes and communication strategies.
After this lecture, you will be able to evaluate emerging tools such as digital health, wearable technologies, and genetic testing for their role in supporting patient-centred orthodontic care.