The aim was to adapt the Orofacial Esthetic Scale (OES) and to test psychometric properties of the Albanian language version in the cultural environment of the Republic of Kosovo.MethodsThe OES questionnaire was translated from the original English version according to the accepted techniques. The reliability (internal consistency), and validity (construct, convergent and discriminative) were tested in 169 subjects, test-retest in 61 dental students (DS), and responsiveness in 51 prosthodontic patients with treatment needs (PPTN).ResultsThe corrected item correlation coefficients of OES-ALB ranged from 0.686 to 0.909. The inter-item correlation coefficient ranged between 0.572 and 0.919. The Cronbach’s alpha was 0.961 and IIC 0.758. Test- retest was confirmed by good ICCs and by no significant differences of the OES scores through the period of 14 days without any orofacial changes (p > 0.05). Construct validity was proved by the presence of one-factor composition that assumed 79.079 % of the variance. Convergent validity showed significant correlation between one general question about satisfaction with orofacial esthetics and the OES summary score, as well as between the sum of the 3 OHIP-ALB49 questions related to orofacial aesthetics and the OES summary score. Discriminative validity was confirmed with statistically significant differences between DS, prosthodontic patients without treatment need and PPTN (p < 0.01). Responsiveness was confirmed by a significant increase of OES scores after PPTN patients received new fixed partial or removable dentures (P < 0.001).ConclusionThe results proved excellent psychometric properties of the OES-ALB questionnaire in the Republic of Kosovo.

Objective:The aim of the study was to analyze the distribution of color parameters, lightness (L*), chroma (C), hue (H), a* and b*, in the intercanine sector in maxilla.Material and Methods:Patients' tooth color measurements were performed using an intraoral spectrophotometer VITA Easyshade® (VITA Zahnfabrik H. Rauter GmbH and Co. KG, Bad Sackingen, Germany). The measurements were made in 255 subjects in the intercanine sector in maxilla.Results:The mean values for the group of 255 subjects were as follows: L*, a*, b*, C, and H as 81.6, 0.67, 21.6, 21.7, and 92.7, respectively. For F=206.27 and P < 0.001 between L*, a*, b*, C, H, and central incisor/lateral incisor/canines, there were statistically significant differences.Conclusion:With the statistical analysis, it was determined that there are significant color differences between the teeth of the intercanine sector, which differences are clinically significant also.

SUMMARY:The aim of this study was to investigate the sexual dimorphism in permanent maxillary central incisor in Kosovo Albanian population using crown linear diameters, crown module (CM) and crown index (CI). The study sample consisted of 204 dental students, selected from the Dental School, Faculty of Medicine at University of Prishtina, Republic of Kosovo. The measurements of mesiodistal (MD) and buccolingual (BL) crown diameters of left and right permanent maxillary incisor (MCI) were taken in a dental casts using electronic digital caliper Boss, Hamburg -Germany, with accuracy± 0.01 mm. The descriptive statistics, t-test and percentage of sexual dimorphism in crown linear diameters and dental indexes of maxillary central incisor were calculated. The results showed a statistically significant difference in MD (p<0.01) and BL diameters (p<0.0001) of maxillary central incisor between males and females. BL diameter of maxillary central incisor showed greater sexual dimorphism (4.78 %) than mesiodistal diameter (2.76 %). CM presented with a higher level of sexual dimorphism (3.76 %) comparing to CI (1.89 %). The findings of this study demonstrated sexual dental dimorphism in crown linear diameters and dental indexes in maxillary central incisor in Kosovo-Albanian population.

BackgroundThe new Chewing Function Questionnaire (CFQ) was lately developed in Croatia to measure the chewing ability in prosthodontic patients, as a one-dimensional instrument consisting of 10-items. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop an Albanian version of the CFQ questionnaire and to test its psychometric properties in a new typical environment among the Kosovo population. Materials and methodsThe original version of CFQ questionnaire was translated and cross-culturally adapted from the English language into Albanian in accordance with international guidelines. Its validity (construct, convergent and discriminative) and internal consistency (reliability) were tested in 205 participants. Test-retest reliability was evaluated in 61 subjects with natural teeth, and responsiveness was evaluated in 51 prosthodontic patients with treatment needs.ResultsInternal consistency of CFQ-ALB indicated excellent agreement, with Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.974 and average inter-item correlation of 0.792. Intraclass correlation coeficinets for test-retest were found without significant differences by 95 % of confidence intervals (p > 0.05). Construct validity was supported by a single factor that accounted for 81.711 % of the variance observed. Convergent validity was supported by the association between self-reported general satisfactions with chewing and CFQ summary scores. Discriminat validity was supported as statistically significant differences were observed between pre-defined groups. Responsiveness was confirmed by the significant difference between baseline summary scores and the after treatment scores; the mean change was 15.57 (SD =2.49) (p < 0.001).ConclusionThe obtained results suggest excellent psychometric properties of the CFQ-ALB questionnaire for determining chewing function in the Republic of Kosovo.