A comparison of the perception of facial profile by the general public and 3 groups of clinicians.

Orthodontists and maxillofacial surgeons frequently plan orthognathic treatment to produce an "ideal" Class I occlusion and skeletal relationship. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the preferred facial profile chosen by orthodontists, maxillofacial surgeons, dental students, and members of the general public conformed to a Class I profile. Photographs were taken of 2 male and 2 female adult subjects with Class I profiles, and by means of a computer program the images were manipulated to produce Class II, Class III, and long face profiles. The orthodontists, surgeons, dental students, and members of the general public ranked each group of 4 photos in order of their attractiveness. Orthodontists and maxillofacial surgeons were found to be significantly more likely to choose a Class I skeletal relationship as the most attractive profile. A significant difference was found between orthodontists and dental students (P < 0.01) and between orthodontists and the general public (P < 0.001) with regard to the assessment of the Class I profile as the most attractive, when all 4 subjects were considered. Similar results were noted for maxillofacial surgeons. Whether the assessor was an orthodontist, maxillofacial surgeon, or a member of the general public was found to be significant when examining subjects 1 (female) and 3 (male). The sex of the assessor was also a significant factor for subject 3 (male), where female assessors were more likely to rank the Class I profile as most attractive (P < 0.05).