Face-central incisor morphometric relation in Malays and Chinese

Abstract

This research intended to examine the metric relation between face and inverted maxillary central incisor in the Malay and Chinese ethnic groups. One hundred twenty Malay and Chinese volunteers were investigated for face-central incisor matching. Their results were compared to 51 Iraqis who served as a control. The similarity was tested statistically using three different mathematic methods to examine the presence of face- tooth morphometric relationship. In the first part the presence of correlation between the facial and the central incisor dimensions was investigated using direct facial and tooth measurements. The following biometrical points were measured on the face: bizygomatic, bigonial widths, and nasion- pogonian height. While, the measurements on the tooth were: the midpoint of the incisal edge tooth to the midpoint of the highest cervical curvature on the labial surface, and the tooth maximum width (nearly at the level of contact points). In the second part, the Image analyzer soft ware was used to indirectly measure the width at 14 different vertical locations on the face starting from the pogonion and ending in the frontal area, and 14 areas starting from the cervical area of the tooth and ending at the widest incisal region. In the third part of the study, three dentists evaluated the face- tooth matching visually. The results showed that a statistically significant metric correlation existed between the 14 selected widths of the frontal face view and the 14 widths of the labial view of the central incisor (p<0.05). In addition, the face frontal view was matching the tooth frontal form (p <0.05) using visual perception. As a conclusion of this study, the inverted central incisor form corresponded to the frontal view of the face in Malay and Chinese people. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.