Functional decline in facial expression generation in older women: A cross-sectional study using three-dimensional...

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Facial Plastic Surgery

Background:

• Aging is associated with a decline in decoding facial expressions.
• Age-related changes in facial structure may also impede expression interpretation.
• Empirical evidence for the latter mechanism is lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of aging on facial morphology at rest and during smiling.
• To compare 3D facial surface morphology between younger and older Japanese women.

Main Methods:

• Acquired 3D facial images of younger (18-32 years) and older (55-65 years) Japanese women at rest and smiling.
• Quantified facial surface morphology using wire mesh fitting.
• Analyzed morphological differences using t-tests, principal component analysis (PCA), and multifactor analysis of variance (MANOVA).

Main Results:

• Significant age-related 3D facial changes were observed in expression generation.
• Older adults showed less soft tissue movement from rest to smile compared to younger adults.
• Facial morphology during smiling was less distinguishable from resting morphology in older adults (80% accuracy) than in younger adults (99% accuracy).

Conclusions:

• Facial morphology differs significantly between younger and older adults.
• Age-related changes in facial structure influence the generation and perception of facial expressions.
• These findings may explain communication difficulties experienced by older individuals.