Ahmad, N: Aesthetics in complete dentures

The concept of esthetics has fascinated mankind for centuries. ‘Esthetics‘, or ‘to be esthetic‘, was defined, redefined, philosophized, & conceptualized. The interpretation of what is "esthetic" is as broad an issue as one can envision. Esthetics may refer to physical attractiveness, material or tangible , spiritual harmony, or philosophic attitude. In part, because of the wide range of interpretation of esthetics, much is written on all its aspects. Dentistry is certainly no exception. A successful denture may be defined as one in which the three cardinal factors of mechanics, esthetics, & phonetics are so completely & perfectly harmonized, that the patient can not only chew his food properly, but also experiences equal satisfaction from the contribution of the denture to his facial expressions & speech. It is frequently found that even with mechanically satisfactory denture the patient will complain of not being able to chew well. Perhaps, with only a slight improvement in esthetics, the patient will no longer complain of the inefficiency of dentures. The goal of a successful denture today is to attain a healthy beauty by harmonizing morphology & function.