Perception of facial profi le and orthodontic treatment outcome - importance of patient’s opinion in treatment plan

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy in the perception of the own facial profi le by subjects and to compare the orthodontist’s perception of attractive profi le with those of laypeople and dental students. Materials and Methods: In this study, 180 subjects (90 dental students and 90 laypeople) from Riyadh province of Saudi Arabia were evaluated by a questionnaire. The questionnaire was designed to fi nd out the most attractive profi le among the two groups, the perception of own facial profi le and expectations of subjects from orthodontic treatment. The facial profi les of the individuals were evaluated by two clinicians separately. The diff erences among groups in the perception of the own profi le were compared by using Chi-square (χ2) test. Kappa coeffi cient was used to assess the agreement between the two groups. For all statistical analysis P < 0.05 was set as the signifi cance level. Results: The most attractive profi le perceived by both the groups was Class I, followed by straight profi le and least attractive was Class III profi le with the protrusive mandible. The diff erence in the profi le perception between the clinicians and subjects was statistically signifi cant (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The most attractive profi le perceived by both the groups was Class I, followed by straight profi le dental students were more accurate in the perception of the own profi le. The expected profi le of patients after orthodontic treatment is not same for all the subjects.