Perception of facial profile attractiveness of a brown subject displaying different degrees of lip projection or retrusion, in the city of Salvador/Bahia

Abstract

Introduction: The attractiveness and facial aesthetics are commonly defined by the media in modern society and the number of patients seeking for changes in the facial appearance is progressively increasing. Augmented face convexity is believed to be non aesthetic and among the treatments available for its correction, the extraction of premolars followed by anterior teeth retraction produces a significant effect. However, it is questionable whether the procedure is reasonable in brown and black patients, since dental protrusion is considered a common morphological feature in these groups. Methods: A photograph of a brown female subject was manipulated with image-editing program to generate a set of images with different degrees of labial retraction/protrusion. Two hundred individuals, randomly selected, were asked to rate each photograph and select which one showed the best aesthetic appearance. The survey was carried out in Salvador / Bahia (Brazil), which is a city with strong African slavery background and high proportion of brown and black population.Results:Regardless of color, sex or income, the interviewees chose primarily the straight facial profile and secondarily the slightly concave or convex as more pleasant for a brown female individual (p< 0.05). The moderate and extreme convexity had the lowest scores (p< 0.05). Conclusions: It is suggested that among the accessed population, straight and slightly convex or concave profiles were preferred for a brown subject and moderate or excessive facial protrusion were not well accepted. It is expected that these data can guide orthodontists about the need for extraction to reduce dental protrusion in brown patients.

Orthodontic treatment needs in Saudi young adults and manpower requirements

“…The revolution in communication and social media has led to changes in the beauty perception among most social media users, especially young adults. 13 , 14 The results could be the lack of acceptance of mild malocclusions and seeking a Hollywood smile. Added to this is the increased knowledge and awareness of what changes in orthodontic treatment can accomplish.…”

What do black patients expect from orthodontic treatment? The aesthetic perception of facial profile between orthodontists and black laypersons

“…This study was conducted to evaluate the perception of facial aesthetics among orthodontists and black laypersons in the Brazilian Northeast, a reference region for this black population, 6 , 10 consisting mostly of non-white people 25 , who historically have a convex and bi-protrusion profile as the most common features among them. 26…”

“…This result was compatible with that of studies in which orthodontists and laypersons preferred a slightly convex or straight profile as the most pleasant for black persons, for both African-Americans 33 and Afro-Brazilians. 6 The profile selected represented a less convex pattern than the type that was considered normal for black individuals, suggesting that the objective of the treatment should consider the ethnic characteristics and the point of view of the patient being treated. 33 , 6 Hall et al 17 found a preference for increased convexity of the soft tissues for Afro-Americans, when compared with White-Americans.…”

“…This results in a convexity of the facial profile that is frequently unacceptable, in spite of an Angle Class I with normal overjet and overbite, with well-aligned dental arches. 4 - 6 …”

Aesthetic perception of the smile related to the vertical position of the lower anterior teeth by afro-descendent laypeople

“…One of the facial expressions that arises more interest in people and composes the beauty of it is the smile. [1][2][3] Therefore, studies have been conducted in order to reach a desired set of common characteristics for an optimal aesthetic smile. This goal is without successful perspective, since culture and ethnicity, values on what is beautiful and ugly or right and wrong vary on different continents, being illusory the idea of reaching a common denominator on this aspect.…”