Comparison of Color Measurements of Postgraduate Dental Students Using Different Color Determination Methods

The human eye is effective in detecting subtle differences in tooth color. However, variations in the shade, translucency, opacity, and characterization of a tooth may not be accurately identified. Visual color matching is subject to physiological variables that may lead to inconsistencies, such as age, gender, experience, the type of scale used, varying degrees of light exposure, eye fatigue, and color vision deficiency. Studies comparing visual and instrumental methods have demonstrated that spectrophotometers yield better results compared to visual color scales. Therefore, it is expected that color measurement devices improve the accuracy of tooth color determination, thereby enhancing the interpretation and aesthetic execution of restorations. In recent years, the button technique has been described for shade selection in direct aesthetic restorations in the anterior region. In this technique, small composite samples in the form of dots are polymerized on the tooth surface using a curing light. Digital photographs are then taken, and appropriate enamel and dentin shades are selected on a computer using polarized and black-and-white images. Very few clinical studies have investigated the use of digital color images obtained through intraoral digital scanners for shade selection, comparing them with other existing methods. The aim of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of shade determination skills in the anterior region by comparing a new technique, the button technique, with other methods and to recommend the most suitable method for shade selection