Quantifying faces three-dimensionally in orthodontic practice

The purpose of this study was to formulate and demonstrate a method for quantifying and visualizing the three-dimensional (3-D) configuration of the soft tissues of the face at rest to facilitate a quantitative and instantaneous understanding of a patient's static facial form characteristics.

3-D facial images of 200 Japanese adult volunteers at rest were recorded using a 3-D photogrammetric system. For each participant, a wire mesh fitting was conducted based on the assignment of landmarks to each 3-D facial image. This method generated 6,017 points on the wire mesh (i.e., the nodes of the fitted mesh). For each point, the mean and standard deviation were calculated and used for patient evaluation. The system performance was exemplified with three orthodontic patients with skeletal Class II and III malocclusions and laterotrusion.

Three patients with severe skeletal Class II and III deformities and laterotrusion were evaluated with the proposed method.

A clinical method for practitioners to quantify and visualize the soft tissues of a patient's face in 3 dimensions has been presented with clinical applications and considerations. This method allows practitioners to evaluate how patients' facial characteristics differ from normative faces.