Subjective and Objective Methods of Shade Selection - A Comparative Study

Abstract: With the advent of spectrophotometry, the chore of selecting the shade of a tooth became extremely easy. However, every new advent in technology comes with a high price. The question then arises as to whether the conventional method was inaccurate and definitely needed replacement. This study was carried out with the aim of assessing the reliability of the conventional shade selection techniques and to see whether spectrophotometers are a must in dental practice. The study was conducted in two main steps. The objective method of shade selection using a spectrophotometer and the subject method using two commercially available shade guides. For the subjective method 150 participants were selected with no bias towards gender or level of experience. Participants were subjected to a color training program to check for their visual acuity. They were then asked to choose the shades of four preselected shade tabs using both the VITA Classical® and VITA 3D Master® shade guides. Data was statistically analyzed using IBM-SPSS (Version 22) The objective method showed the best accuracy with a 100% accuracy rate. Chromatic perception disability played a role in the accuracy of subjective methods of shade selection. Participants proved to be more accurate with VITA Classical® shade guide over the VITA 3D Master® shade guide. Experience proved to be a factor in accuracy of shade matching while using VITA 3D Master® shade guide. Subjective methods of shade selection is influenced by the chromatic perception disability and especially showed significance (p=0.000) for the VITA Classical® shade guide. Accuracy levels with VITA Classical® varied with experience seen as Students 82.4%, General Practitioners 50% and Specialists 90%. VITA 3D Master® was seen to be accurate more with General Practitioners (66.7%) and Specialists (40%) than with Students (17.6%). Keywords: Subjective and Objective Methods, Shade Selection. Title: Subjective and Objective Methods of Shade Selection - A Comparative Study Author: Majdi Abu Ramadan, Ahmed Magdy kandil, Omar Al Qurashi, Abdulmohsen Al Ahmed, Dr. Rohit Fernandez, Dr. Elfatih Eisa International Journal of Healthcare Sciences ISSN 2348-5728 (Online) Research Publish Journals

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