title: Natural Tooth Color Estimation Based on Age and Gender.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Assessment of the predictability of tooth color coordinates according to the CIELab system to estimate the color of the maxillary central incisor based on patient age and gender.
  
  
  METHODS
  The tooth color of one of the maxillary central incisors of 1361 Caucasian Spanish individuals aged 16 to 89 years, male and female, was measured using the Easyshade compact spectrophotometer. Color coordinates L*, C*, h*, a*, and b* were recorded according to age and gender.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results obtained show that differences in age account for 45% of the total variation of the L (lightness) coordinate; 21% of the variation in coordinate a*, and 17% of the variation in coordinate b* is due to the same reason. At a confidence level of 95% it may be proposed that the mean estimated color difference (ΔEab*) between real natural color and that predicted by the linear regression model is between 6.4 and 6.9 units.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this sample of Caucasians from Spain, teeth became darker yellow and more reddish with increasing age. The L* coordinate is most strongly related to tooth color in aging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, School of Medicine, University of Salamanca, Spain.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gómez-Polo
authors.affiliation: Department of Dentistry, School of Medicine, University of Salamanca, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Montero
authors.affiliation: Departament of Orofacial Prosthesis, Faculty of Dentistry, University Complutense of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gómez-Polo
authors.affiliation: Departament of Orofacial Prosthesis, Faculty of Dentistry, University Complutense of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan Antonio Martínez Vázquez
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: de Parga
authors.affiliation: Departament of Orofacial Prosthesis, Faculty of Dentistry, University Complutense of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Alicia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Celemin-Viñuela
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003116:Color; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007180:Incisor / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D008297:Male; D008437:Maxilla; D008875:Middle Aged; D012737:Sex Factors; D013030:Spain; D013053:Spectrophotometry
keywords: CIELab; Natural tooth color; maxillary central incisor; regression models