A comparison between 2D and 3D methods of quantifying facial morphology

Currently, two & three-dimensional (2D & 3D) imaging techniques have largely replaced the direct anthropometric method in the assessment of facial morphology, but the difference between the two techniques was not quantified. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare and quantify (the difference between) the two techniques.

The faces of 150 subjects (75 males, 75 females) of northern Nigeria, predominantly Hausa ethnic group, were photographed (using digital camera) and scanned (using a 3D surface laser scanner). Facial dimensions were generated from the resulting virtual 2D and 3D models. Data were analyzed using R-statistic software & Paired sample t-test/Pearson correlation were conducted to compare the two methods and to quantify the level of closeness between the two measurements.

Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was very low (0.26) for the 3D and 2D measurements indicating the level of differences between the methods. Measurements taken with laser scanner were higher relative to the one taken by camera. The mean differences between the 3D and the 2D methods of quantifying facial morphology indicated a statistically significant positive difference. CONCLUSION: 2D and 3D anthropometry cannot be used interchangeably since there exists statistically significant variation between the two methods.