Influence Of Maxillary Central Incisor Dimensions, Angulations & Positions Bilaterally On The Perception Of Smile Esthetics

Abstract

Objective An attractive smile achievement is one of the main goals of Orthodontic treatment. Smile is the product of several factors interacting to differing degrees of relevance. This study was based on the hypothesis that an increase in crown width of the maxillary central incisors is considered equally attractive amongst Orthodontists, Prosthodontists and Laypersons. Materials and Methods The frontal smile photographs of a male and a female participants were captured. The maxillary central incisors’ vertical position (+ 0.5 mm, + 1 mm, -0.5 mm, -1 mm), angulation (+ 2⁰,+4⁰,-2⁰,-4⁰) and mesio distal width (+ 0.5 mm, + 1 mm, -0.5 mm, -1 mm) were changed generating a total of 26 photographs. The photographs were rated for their smiles using a Visual Analogue Scale by the 3 Observer groups. Results Twenty-five photographs showed statistically significant differences in perception scores. Among these, none revealed any statistically significant disparity between Orthodontists and Prosthodontists, fifteen displayed statistically significant difference in perception scores between Orthodontists and Laypersons and all 25 photographs displayed statistically significant differences in perception scores of prosthodontists and laypersons. Conclusions Orthodontists rated the Female Ideal Smile as the most attractive while Prosthodontists rated the Female Smile with Digitally altered vertical position of Maxillary Central Incisors by -1 mm to be the most attractive and Laypersons rated the Female Smile with Digitally altered vertical position of Maxillary Central Incisor by -0.5 mm as the most attractive. Consequently, it was established that the hypothesis was false. Clinical relevance Useful in quantification and esthetic evaluation of smile as a routine diagnostic procedure.