Esthetic perception of black spaces between maxillary central incisors by different age groups.

Introduction: The aim of this research was to evaluate esthetic perceptions of the smile, especially regarding black spaces between the maxillary central incisors, by laypersons in 3 age groups.

Methods: Photographs were digitally manipulated to simulate black spaces in the region of the maxillary central incisor crenations. The images were printed on photographic paper and attached to a questionnaire that was given to 150 laypersons in 3 age groups: 15 to 19, 35 to 44, and 65 to74 years. They were asked to use a visual analog scale method to rate the smiles from a score of 0, corresponding to "not very attractive," to 10, "very attractive." Differences between the examiners were verified by the Mann-Whitney test. All statistics were performed with a degree of confidence of 95%.

Results: The results showed that older persons had more difficulty perceiving black spaces. In the younger groups, the subjects were better able to perceive the black spaces, and the larger the black space, the less attractive they rated the photograph (P < 0.01).

Conclusions: Younger people are more likely than older people to perceive black spaces in maxillary incisor crenations. The larger the black spaces, the less attractive they rate the smile.