CONVENTIONAL VERSUS SPECTROPHOTOMETRIC SHADE TAKING FOR THE UPPER CENTRAL INCISOR: A CLINICAL COMPARATIVE STUDY

Abstract

Introduction: Restoration of a single upper central incisor is one of the most challenging situations for the dentist-dental technician team. Proper selection, communication and more accurate color reproduction of the upper central incisor is the key to a successful prosthodontic treatment. The objective of this study was to determine the inter-observer variability in shade selection for the upper central incisor when using two shade guides (Vita Classic and Vitapan 3D Master) and to compare the results with those of Vita Easy Shade spectrophotometer. Material and method: The study involved 26 students of the Faculty of Dentistry, who examined the color of central incisor for 4 patients with conventional shade guides. Standard conditions were used to choose the color and determinations were made independently by two shade guides, Vita Classic and Vita 3D Master. The results were compared with those obtained by using the Vita Easy Shade spectrophotometer. The IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 19) software was used to statistically compare the results of the students with the spectrophotometer results. Results: A frequencies analysis concluded that the correlation percentage between the determinations of the students and the spectrophotometer was 37.5% for both Vita Classic and Vitapan 3D Master shade guide. Conclusion: this study showed that there are some large variations in color determination for the upper central incisor by using 2 conventional shade guides and the spectrophotometer may be a useful educational tool.