Perception on Oclusal Pigmentation of Pits and Fissures in Simulated Aesthetic Restoration

Background: There are several resources to mimic the restorations in dental structures. The biological sealing can be confused with a carious lesion when seen by a layman. The aim of this study was to analyze the perception of occlusal characterization in posterior aesthetic restorations, using different degrees of pit and fissure pigmentation simulating biological sealing. Methods: This work analyzed the perception of dental students and lay patients in the acceptance of simulated aesthetic restorations in posterior teeth with different degrees of occlusal pigmentation, simulating the biological sealing. It is a cross-sectional research involving dental students and lay patients of the Federal University of Ceara (UFC) and Federal University of Espirito Santo (UFES). Results: Participants answered a questionnaire where, through pictures, the interviewees indicated which occlusal characterization they considered more esthetic. Lay participants tended to prefer restorations without pigmentation of pits and fissures while students preferred mostly restorations that accompany the level of pigmentation of adjacent teeth. Regarding the difficulty among students in visually differentiating biological sealing from a caries lesion, most of the UFC students (55%) stated that “yes”, while the majority of the UFES (52%) answered that “sometimes” (p=0.018). Conclusion: It is known that pictures are not sufficient means for the detection of dental caries, but that can be useful to evaluate if the interviewee associates the image with the disease, even without the technical knowledge to do so.