Influence of Smile Arc and Buccal Corridors on Facial Attractiveness: A Cross-sectional Study.

Abstract

Two aspects of the smile: the Smile Arc (SA) and Buccal Corridors (BC) have been the interest of the orthodontist in recent years. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the influence of the smile arc and buccal corridors on facial attractiveness as evaluated by orthodontists, general dentists and laymen. Two subjects (one male & one female) were selected from the regional population fulfilling the criteria of an ideal smile arc and ideal buccal corridors. Frontal smile view photographs of these subjects were taken and modified by using adobe photoshop 7.0 to create combination of three smile arc variance and three buccal corridors variations respectively which were shown to 25 orthodontists, 25 general dentists & 25 laymen, to rate the facial attractiveness of each image on a rating scale. All the three groups (laypersons, dentists and orthodontists) showed significant difference in ratings, indicating that they had different perceptions on the facial attractiveness. Orthodontists were more precise in discerning the smile arc and buccal corridors compared to dentists and laypersons.