Should midline diastema in mixed dentition be an aesthetic concern?

Background: Mixed dentition determines an important period of occlusion development in childhood.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the aesthetic impact of the midline diastema cut-off point in mixed dentition.

Design: A cross-sectional study was performed with 257 children aged 8-10 years in late mixed dentition, with midline diastema of 1-5 mm and normal maxillary overjet. Orthodontic Aesthetic Subjective Impact Score determined the aesthetic impact of the midline diastema. Four quartiles of diastema measurements and impact scores were considered as cut-off points. Receiver Operating Characteristic curves were constructed, and the distances representing the distances to the ideal point were calculated. The Yuden index determined the efficiency of measuring the diastema to assess the aesthetic impact. The Kruskal-Wallis test compared the groups of participants classified according to the diastema cut-off by the sample quartile regarding the impact score. The analyses were performed with a significance level of 5%.

Results: There was no significant difference between the four groups of measurement quartiles of the diastema regarding the aesthetic impact (P > .05).

Conclusions: The perception of dental aesthetics in mixed dentition children was not affected by the midline diastema, regardless of the cut-off point.