Aims: To examine orthodontic patients’ aesthetic perception and factors likely to influence the detection of a dentofacial midline discrepancy.
Methods: An electronic questionnaire was designed to invite an orthodontic population to evaluate and select an ideal value, a detectable value and a tolerable value from a series of images exhibiting a dentofacial midline discrepancy. A binary logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate possible influencing factors.
Results: A barely discernable dentofacial midline discrepancy ranged between -0.020 ± 0.38 mm. The personal characteristics of the evaluators appeared to have no appreciable effect at this level. A detectable value was 1.33 ± 0.63 mm and the education level, orthodontic history and malocclusion severity were influencing factors amongst the assessors. A tolerable value was 2.63 ± 0.94 mm and influencing factors included the education level and the malocclusion severity of the evaluators.
Conclusion: The barely discernable value, detectable value and tolerable value could be used to quantify the aesthetic perception of orthodontic patients regarding a dentofacial midline discrepancy. The aesthetic perception was influenced by observer education level, orthodontic history and personal malocclusion severity, but not by age, gender, and subjective evaluation of dentofacial appearance.
