Perception of Saudi dentists and lay people to altered smile esthetics

Aim: To evaluate and compare the perceptions of Saudi dentists and lay people to altered smile features. Methods: Thirty-six digital smile photographs with altered features were used. Altered features included the following: crown length,width,gingival level of the lateral incisors,gingival display,midline diastema,and upper midline shift. The photographs were presented to a sample of 30 dentists and 30 lay people with equal gender distribution. Each participant rated each picture with a visual analogue scale,which ranged from 0 (very unattractive) to 100 (very attractive). Results: Dentists were more critical than lay people when evaluating symmetrical crown length discrepancies. Compared to lay people,Saudi dentists gave lower ratings to a crown length discrepancy of 2. mm (P 0.001),crown width discrepancy of ≥2. mm (P 0.05),change in gingiva to lip distance of ≥2. mm (P 0.01),and midline deviation of 1. mm (P 0.01). There was no significant difference between dentists and lay people towards alterations in the gingival level of the lateral incisors or towards a space between the central incisors. No significant sex difference was seen across the groups. Conclusion: In this sample,Saudi dentists gave significantly lower attractiveness scores to crown length and crown width discrepancies,midline deviations,and changes in gingiva to lip distance compared to Saudi lay people.