A comparative assessment of the perception of Chinese facial profile esthetics

Introduction: The aim of this study was to compare the perception of male and female Chinese facial profile esthetics between dental professionals, dental students, and laypersons. Material: The sample comprised 31 dental professionals (20 orthodontists, 11 oral surgeons), 92 dental students, and 152 laypersons in an Asian community. The facial profile photographs and lateral cephalometric radiographs of a Chinese man and a woman, each with a normal profile, a Class I incisor relationship, and a Class I skeletal pattern, were digitized. The digital images were modified to obtain 7 facial profiles for each sex. The images were constructed by altering cephalometric skeletal and dental hard tissue Chinese normative values by 2 standard deviations in the anteroposterior plane only. The 7 profiles were (1) bimaxillary protrusion, (2) protrusive mandible, (3) retrusive mandible, (4) normal profile (Class I incisor with Class I skeletal pattern), (5) retrusive maxilla, (6) protrusive maxilla, and (7) bimaxillary retrusion. Results: Normal and bimaxillary retrusion Chinese male and female profiles were perceived to be highly attractive by all 3 groups. Profiles with a protrusive mandible were perceived to be the least attractive. Dental professionals, dental students, and laypersons were highly correlated for the perception of male (r > 0.67) and female (r > 0.93) profile esthetics. All correlation coefficients were found to be significant for the perception of female profiles, but, for male profiles, only the correlation coefficient between dental students and laypersons was significant. Conclusions: Chinese male and female profiles that were normal or had bimaxillary retrusion were perceived to be highly attractive by dental professionals, dental students, and laypersons, and profiles with a protrusive mandible were perceived to be the least attractive. Dental students and laypersons were more tolerant of a male profile with a retrusive mandible than were dental professionals, and all groups were more tolerant of bimaxillary protrusion in women than in men. Dental professionals, dental students, and laypersons had a similar trend in male and female esthetic preferences. The perception of female profiles by all 3 groups was highly and significantly correlated. Only the perception of male esthetics by dental students and laypersons was not significantly correlated with dental professionals.