title: Lighting conditions used during visual shade matching in private dental offices.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To our knowledge, no data are available on the actual lighting that is used for visual shade matching in private dental offices.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to determine the shade matching practices and interest in continuing education in dental practices and to determine the quantity and quality of the ambient lighting used during visual shade matching in a sample cohort of dentists in private practices.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-two private practices were enrolled, and each completed a 1-page survey on the clinic's shade matching practices. A spectrophotometer was used to measure the ambient lighting in each practice, collecting data on color temperature (Kelvin), color rendering index (CRI), and light intensity (foot candles/fc). A 2-sided nonparametric sign test was used to compare the true median color temperature with the standard (5500°K). A 1-sided t test was used to compare the CRI with the standard (CRI >90) (α=.05 for all statistical analyses).
  
  
  RESULTS
  All dental practitioners surveyed used mainly visual shade matching in their practices. Of those, 87.5% showed interest in attending continuing education on this topic, with 56.3% preferring a clinical demonstration course. The mean color temperature was 4152.9°K and was significantly different from the standard 5500°K (P<.001). The 1-sided t test indicated that the mean CRI was less than 90 (P=1). The 95% confidence interval for the intensity was 80.7 to 111.6 fc.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ambient light in the majority of the 32 dental private practices measured was not ideal for visual shade matching.
authors.affiliation: Section Head, Maxillofacial Prosthodontics, Veterans Affairs Nebraska Western Iowa Health Care System, Omaha, Neb; and Special Associate Professor, Department of Prosthodontics, Creighton University School of Dentistry, Omaha, Neb. Electronic address: alvingwee@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Alvin G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Wee
authors.affiliation: Dental student, Creighton University School of Dentistry, Omaha, Neb.
authors.forename: Alison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.affiliation: Former research student, Department of Prosthodontics, Creighton University School of Dentistry, Omaha, Neb.
authors.forename: Wendy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Director of Biostatistics, Office of Research and Compliance, Creighton University, Omaha, Neb.
authors.forename: Christopher S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Wichman
mesh_terms: D003118:Color Perception; D003770:Dental Offices; D017267:Dental Prosthesis Design; D006801:Humans; D008029:Lighting; D017797:Prosthesis Coloring / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards*