The purpose of this study was to determine the level of perception and preference between dentists and lay people to altered facial profile. The assessors consisted of 40 dentists and 54 lay people, the survey was performed using questionnaire asking the order of perception and preference. The profiles presented in the questionnaire were based on the profile of one man and one woman, each morphed according to anterior or posterior direction of maxilla and mandible.
The results were as follows.
1. In antero-posterior change of man and woman s profile, both dentists and lay people were sensitive to relatively skeletal profile (convex profile) changes than skeletal profile (concave profile) changes.
2. At least dentists needed to be perceived a 2 mm change in convex profile and a 3 mm change in concave profile and lay people needed to be perceived a 2 mm change in convex profile and a 3 mm change in concave profile for profile view.
3. Dentists are more sensitive in perception of man s profile change than lay people, but there is no significant differences between dentists and lay people in sensitivity of detection for woman s profile changes .
4. It seems that there is a general concordance between dentists and lay people in there perception of man s and woman s facial profile.
This information might be clinician in comprehensive perception and preference of dentists and lay people to altered facial profile.