title: Aesthetic satisfaction scoring - introducing an aesthetic numeric analogue scale (ANA-scale).
abstract: To objectively and reproducibly assess the outcome of aesthetic procedures remains one of the major, unmet challenges in maxillo-facial and plastic surgery. Frequently employed scoring systems for the evaluation of aesthetic procedures are confounded by observer bias, be it that of the patient or of the surgeon. A new approach of pragmatic and simple scoring is the ANA [Aesthetic Numeric Analogue] scale, which facilitates the objective, reproducible, standardized and internationally uniform evaluation of aesthetic procedure outcome by converting all ratings for any kind of aesthetic procedures from a subjective value to an objective figure. The intention of the ANA-scale is to relate aesthetic satisfaction from wording to figures and by this create a rating system. The study is arranging matching pairs of verbal description and figures to finally queue up generating a scale. The clinical feasibility of this rating system is demonstrated in a surgical case. As a detail of the results the influence of the viewer's age to the aesthetic benefit assessment is obvious. In summary the ANA-scale looks to be a tool useful in individual treatment protocols as well as analysis of different techniques of aesthetic surgery for rating of the pure aesthetic satisfaction of the patients.
authors.affiliation: Department for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery/Plastic Surgery (Head: Hans Robert Metelmann), Greifswald University, Ferdinand-Sauerbruch-Strasse BH1, D-17475 Greifswald, Germany.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Funk
authors.forename: Fred
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Podmelle
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guiol
authors.forename: Hans Robert
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Metelmann
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D004955:Esthetics, Dental; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D019647:Oral Surgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult