Prevalence of Tooth Shade and its Correlation with Skin Colour - A Cross-sectional Study.

Introduction: Aesthetics has become an important issue in modern society. Tooth shade is one of the factors in determining aesthetics. Studies have revealed that tooth shade is influenced by age, gender, eye colour, skin colour and other factors.

Aim: The present study was aimed to assess the prevalence of tooth shade and its correlation with skin colour.

Materials And Methods: A total of 300 subjects aged 18-20 years were evaluated for tooth shade using Vitapan - 3D shade guide. Anterior teeth were checked under natural light and facial skin colour by Lakme liquid foundation make up as a shade guide. Data was analysed using chi square test and spearman's correlation.

Results: Out of 300 students, 114 (38.00%) had A2 tooth shade; the least prevalent tooth shade among Chitradurga population was C1 (4.00%). There was a positive correlation between tooth shade and skin colour which was found to be statistically significant (p <0.05).

Conclusion: The most prevalent tooth shade among Chitradurga population was A2 and least was C1. There was a significant correlation between tooth shade and skin colour with lighter skin tone subjects having lighter tooth shade hence skin colour can be used as a guide for shade selection.