Aspetti etici del trattamento delle malformazioni cranio-facciali.

When treating dento-facial deformities, the attention has always been put on the technical aspects of the various interventions instead of the ethical aspects, given the fact that dealing with children the primary worry is providing them with the best cure and the fastest path to a normalization of their deformities. Nonetheless, surgical and dental procedures do modify the aesthetics of the patient, thus you need to take into account also the ethical aspects of such treatments. Our aim has been to identify the outstanding ethical issues regarding the treatment of dento-facial deformities and to evaluate the perception of some peculiar aspects of the treatment by submitting a questionnaire to both the children and the parents. Facial aesthetics represent a psychological issue for most people, and our research confirms it; in particular parents are concerned about the social consequences related to an uncertain facial aesthetic. The crucial point, as always when treating children, is to pursue the best interest for them, leaving aside those concerns typical of the adults.