Perception about Importance of Buccal Corridor and its Width in Smile Esthetics

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Aim: To assess the perception of dental students and house officers regarding role of buccal corridor in smile esthetics and to determine the most esthetically pleasing buccal corridor width. Methods: A photograph of the patient’s face, smiling with the teeth visible up to the first molar was modified digitally to create smiles with no buccal corridor, increasing buccal corridors widths of 5%, 10%, 15%, 20 % and 25% respectively compared with the width of inner oral commissure. A total of 376 dental students and HOs participated in the study and data was collected in questionnaires. Results: Buccal corridor is considered to affect the smile esthetics of an individual by 72.4% of house officers, 67.6% of second year students, 48.7% of 3rd year students and 52.4% of fourth year students(P value: 0.002). Visibility of around 5-10% of buccal corridor was considered most esthetically pleasing, however, the result was not significant. Conclusion: Buccal corridor is an important component in smile esthetics considered by students and house officers of dental colleges. Buccal corridor width of 5-10 % was considered most esthetically pleasing among participants.