Abstract:

Objective This study aimed to investigate the present status of the basic education on smile aesthetics among college students. Methods A total of 120 college students were randomly selected and were asked to answer the questionnaires. The results were analyzed separately for both genders to explore the need for further research. Professional orthodontists provided lectures on basic education on smile aesthetics to 20 female students and 20 male students (randomly selected from the aforementioned 120 participants). These 40 participants were followed up after one week. Changes in subjective perception were analyzed. Moreover, the frontal photos of the respondents (before and after aesthetics education) were assessed by 20 evaluators (10 males and 10 females) for smile aesthetics and were analyzed . Results No significant difference was discovered between males and females on the basis of the 120 questionnaires. Thus, basic education on smile aesthetics was urgently needed by the participants. After professional guidance and training, females chose the “possibility” more frequently, and males changed their altitudes significantly. No significant change occurred between males and females. The resulting ideal smile showed that no significant change occurred in females, but significant changes were noted when both genders were analyzed. Subjective evaluation results show that males tend to believe that the lectures were effective, whereas females did not. Moreover, all the 20 evaluators stated that a significant difference was evident before and after the lecture. Conclusion The results from the orthodontists have certain limitations because of limited samples in this study. However, the findings infer that basic education on smile aesthetics is urgently needed among college students, and orthodontists should take this challenge.

Key words: smile aesthetics, orthodontics, college students