Consumer desire for whiter and brighter teeth has increased demand for tooth whitening products. Objectives: A retrospective analysis of a random sample of 2000 volunteers enrolled into a Contract Research Organization's database from October 2000 to July 2001 was undertaken in order to understand and compare consumer perception vs. dental professional assessment of tooth shade. Methods: At screening, subjects were asked to rate the whiteness of their teeth on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being the darkest and 10 the whitest). They were also asked their age, gender, and routine habits and practices related to commonly perceived stain inducing or stain removing activities. Tooth shade was assessed by experienced dental professionals familiar with shade selection in clinical trials. The Vita Shade Guide was used by the dental professional to assess color. Results: The results of a Pearson's Correlation Coefficient analysis performed on the data indicated no correlation between perceived tooth shade and the dental professional assessment of tooth shade. The analysis found 6% of subjects rated their tooth shade as light (scored 8, 9, or 10), 74% rated their tooth shade in the middle of the scale (scored 4, 5, 6, or 7) and 20% rated their tooth color as dark (1, 2, or 3). The dental professional assessment found 44% of subjects had shades in the lighter range (B1, A1, B2, D2, A2), 42% had shades in the middle range (C1, C2, D4, A3, D3, B3), and 14% had shades in the darker range (A3.5, B4, C3, A4, C4). Conclusion: It was determined that consumer perception of tooth shade was darker than an assessment by a dental professional.

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