Determining Mathematical Standards for Smile Designing Using Berry’s Biometric Index and the Golden Proportion

Abstract

Introduction: Berry’s biometric index correlates the bizygomatic width to the width of the maxillary central incisors (CIs). It has also been suggested that dental and facial esthetics follow the concept of the golden ratio (1.61803). The present research aims to evaluate the practical applicability of Berry’s bizygomatic index and the golden ratio to the width of the maxillary anterior teeth. Materials and Methods: The bizygomatic width and the width of all the maxillary anterior teeth were measured for a total sample of n = 100. The width of maxillary CI was calculated by Berry’s biometric index and the other teeth by golden ratio. The measured and calculated values were compared by means of statistical analysis. Results: The age of study participants ranged from 19 to 35 years with a mean of 24.99 years (standard deviation = ±5.098). There was no statistically significant difference between the measured and the calculated values (P > 0.05). The relative Dahlberg’s error was found to be low for all the teeth. Conclusion: Berry’s biometric index along with golden proportion can be reliably used to determine the mesiodistal width of the maxillary anterior teeth. The methods can be implemented in cases where there is no reference to determine the width of upper anterior teeth during any esthetic restorative procedure. Maxillary anterior teeth dictate the esthetics of a smile; therefore, this study attempts to shed light on the importance of the coherent use of these mathematical ratios to provide an objective formula for smile rehabilitation.