Overbite recognition and factors affecting esthetic tolerance among laypeople.

Objectives: To determine recognition ability and the levels of esthetic tolerance of deep bite and anterior open bite (AOB) among laypeople and investigate the factors affecting levels of tolerance.

Materials and methods: Using a questionnaire, laypeople (N = 100) were examined, and overbite was measured. They were tested for whether they recognized deep bite and AOB. Esthetic tolerance thresholds for deep bite and AOB were selected by incremental depiction in grayscale images. Stepwise logistic regression analyses were used to quantify the effect of recognition and other factors (age, sex, education level, occupation, history of orthodontic treatment, interest in orthodontic treatment or retreatment, and overbite presence) affecting the tolerance of overbite problems (α = 0.05).

Results: Of the participants, 55% and 94% recognized deep bite and AOB, respectively. Participants with a deep bite were significantly more likely to esthetically tolerate deep bite compared with those without a deep bite (odds ratio [OR], 3.57; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.29-9.89). Participants who recognized a deep bite problem had significantly lower esthetic tolerance to deep bite compared with participants who did not recognize a deep bite (OR, 0.17; 95% CI, 0.06-0.45). None of the other eight chosen factors significantly affected the tolerance level of AOB (P > .05).

Conclusions: Participants with a deep bite or those who did not recognize a deep bite had significantly higher esthetic tolerance of deep bite than those without or those who recognized the problem (P < .05).