Perception of Dentists and Laypeople toward Altered Smile Characteristics in a Sample of Iraqi Adults

Introduction: Smile aesthetic is a crucial component in facial attractiveness. Objective: The current study aimed to determine and compare perception of smile aesthetic between two groups of Iraqi population (dentists and laypeople) and to assess gender effect on smile aesthetic perception. Methods: An electronic questionnaire contained six groups of smile images to assess gingival display, Buccal Corridor Space (BCS), unilateral and bilateral lateral incisor crown width, diastema and incisor midline. Each group contained number of images for certain smile feature changed incrementally, responders rated the attractiveness of each image by utilizing a 5-point Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). For each image, the mean and standard deviation was computed, Independent T-test was used to compare between male and female. To compare dentists and laypeople, the Mann Whitney U (MWU) test was utilized. Results: Participants were 330 individuals classified into 185 laypeople (121 female and 64 males) and 145 dentists (83 females and 62 males). No significant difference in aesthetic perception between men and women except in rating 1 mm reduction in lateral incisor crown width unilaterally and 1 mm diastema in dental group and in rating 0.5 mm reduction in lateral incisor crown width unilaterally in laypeople where female rated them significantly poorly. In evaluation perception of dentists and laypeople, significant difference between both groups in rating narrow buccal corridor, bilateral 1.5 mm reduction in lateral incisor width, gingival display of >= 1 mm, midline shift of >= 2 mm and 2 mm diastema where dentists rated them significantly poorly. Conclusion: Female are more sensitive to alteration in lateral incisor width and diastema. Dentists perceived smile aesthetic differently in comparison to laypeople. In order to get excellent results, dentists and patients must collaborate in treatment planning.