Maxillofacial esthetics by three dimensional facial morphometrics

ABSTRACT

This study was performed to investigate the average anthropometric value of normal Korean men and women and to compare the preceding literatures. Additionally, average Korean profilogram was made to serve as a template for diagnosis of facial form. Eighty five Korean subjects(41 men, 44 women) aged between 21 to 26 were selected by members of the author's department on the basis of intact dentition and Class I occlusion without facial asymmetry. Frontal and lateral photographs were taken under standardized condition with digital camera. The image was magnified and adjusted according to the FH plane of cephalometric radiographs and digitized using personal computer. To compare the Western beauty, 25 esthetically pleasing female was selected to measure various angle and distance of the face. 1. It was possible to calculate the mean coordinate value of Korean normal samples which enables the direct visualization and comparison with the use of template. The method in this study was easy to applicate under the Microsoft Windows bases. 2. Maxillary vertical hypoplasia, upper and lower lip protrusion was characteristics of Korean norms and relatively narrow alar base distance, less conspicuous nasal projection was observed. As the vermilion exposure and upper lip length was more than western norm, chin looks shorter than western. To compare the Korean and Western esthetically pleasing profile, facial convexity and nose was less conspicuous in Korean women.