title: Dentin translucency and color evaluation in human incisors, canines, and molars.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  For restorations with excellent esthetics, an understanding of the optical properties of human dentin is needed. Little information is available on the translucency and color parameters of dentin and its relationship to tooth type and position.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this in vitro study was to investigate the translucency and CIELab color coordinates of human dentin in both anterior (incisors and canines) and posterior teeth (molars) by using spectrophotometric and spectroradiometric assessment methods.
  
  
  METHODS
  Uniformly thick specimens (2 mm) of midcoronal human dentin were taken from 33 central and lateral incisors, 7 canines, and 33 molars (all maxillary teeth). The CIELab color coordinates were measured with a clinical spectrophotometer (Easyshade Compact) and a noncontact spectroradiometer (SpectraScan PR-704). The translucency parameter (TP) was calculated. Bland-Altman plots and Wilcoxon signed rank tests for paired samples were used to assess the agreement of the 2 measurement techniques. The differences between anterior and posterior dentin specimens regarding color coordinates and the translucency parameter were analyzed using Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon rank sum tests.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistically significant differences between spectrophotometric and spectroradiometric measurements of the TP and CIELab color coordinates were found in both groups of dentin specimens (P<.05). TP values of molar dentin specimens were significantly higher than those of the anterior ones, regardless of the assessment method (P<.001). Dentin specimens of the anterior teeth exhibited higher L∗ values but lower a∗ and b∗ values on both black and white backgrounds compared with molar dentin specimens.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The dentin of anterior teeth was found to be lighter but less translucent and less chromatic than in molars, regardless of the assessment method used.
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, luj-Napoca, Romania. Electronic address: ioanasofia_ciutrila@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Ioana S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Pop-Ciutrila
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Optics, Faculty of Science, University of Granada, Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Razvan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ghinea
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Medical Informatics and Biostatistics, Faculty of General Medicine, Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, luj-Napoca, Romania.
authors.forename: Horatiu A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Colosi
authors.affiliation: Professor, Department of Prosthodontics and Dental Materials, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, luj-Napoca, Romania.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dudea
mesh_terms: D003116:Color; D003804:Dentin / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D007180:Incisor; D008963:Molar; D013053:Spectrophotometry / Q000379:methods*