Impact of metal and ceramic fixed orthodontic appliances on judgments of beauty and other face-related attributes.
BACKGROUND
Physical attributes, behavior, and personal ornaments exert a direct influence on how a person's beauty and personality are judged. The aim of this study was to investigate how people who wear a fixed orthodontic appliance see themselves and are seen by others in social settings.


METHODS
A total of 60 adults evaluated their own smiling faces in 3 different scenarios: without a fixed orthodontic appliance, wearing a metal fixed orthodontic appliance, and wearing an esthetic fixed orthodontic appliance. Furthermore, 15 adult raters randomly assessed the same faces in standardized front-view facial photographs. Both the subjects and the raters answered a questionnaire in which they evaluated criteria on a numbered scale ranging from 0 to 10. The models judged their own beauty, and the raters assigned scores to beauty, age, intelligence, ridiculousness, extroversion, and success.


RESULTS
The self-evaluations showed decreased beauty scores (P <0.0001) when a fixed orthodontic appliance, especially a metal one, was being worn. There was no statistically significant difference between the 3 situations in the 6 criteria analyzed.


CONCLUSIONS
A fixed orthodontic appliance did not affect how personal attributes are assessed. However, fixed orthodontic appliances apparently changed the subjects' self-perceptions when they looked in the mirror.
Private practice, Brasilia; invited professor, Department of Orthodontics, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil. Electronic address: lilianmfonseca@gmail.com.
Lílian Martins
LM
Fonseca
Head and chairperson, Department of Orthodontics, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Brazil.
Telma Martins de
TM
Araújo
Resident, Department of Orthodontics, Federal University of Bahia, Salvador, Brazil.
Aline Rôde
AR
Santos
Adjunct professor, Department of Orthodontics, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil.
Jorge
J
Faber
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001504:Beauty; D002516:Ceramics / Q000737:chemistry; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003722:Dental Alloys / Q000737:chemistry; D003764:Dental Materials / Q000737:chemistry; D005120:Extraversion, Psychological; D005145:Face / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007360:Intelligence; D007600:Judgment; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016382:Orthodontic Appliance Design / Q000523:psychology*; D016910:Orthodontic Brackets; D009969:Orthodontic Wires; D012929:Psychological Distance; D012649:Self Concept; D012904:Smiling / Q000523:psychology; D012928:Social Desirability; D013193:Stainless Steel / Q000737:chemistry; D055815:Young Adult
D003722:Dental Alloys; D003764:Dental Materials; D013193:Stainless Steel