Mandibular Contouring in Subjects With Class II or Class III Dentofacial Deformities and Treatment Needs

Facial contouring relates to hard and soft structures that make up the face. Skeletal class II and III subjects present bone structure and position changes, significantly impacting the soft tissues. This study aims to analyze the morphology of the mandible at mandibular ramus and angle level in subjects with skeletal facial deformity class II and III who are candidates for orthognathic surgery and to define implications in facial contour. A cross-sectional study used cone beam computed tomography to compare the mandibular contour (mandibular angle and ramus region) in orthognathic surgery candidates. One hundred sixty orthognathic surgery candidates were analyzed, ranging in age from 18 to 58 years (31.29 ± 11.97). Regarding the skeletal class, 95 (59.37%) were skeletal class II, and 65 (40.62%) were skeletal class III. Class II subjects had a larger antegonial notch than class III subjects. Concerning the mandibular contour, class II subjects presented less vertical distance than class III subjects, but both presented similar gonial angles. Concerning the ideas to assess the need for mandibular contouring surgery, the 2 proposals to determine the need for mandibular contouring surgery in class II and III subjects present a similar distribution. The mandibular notch is an objective element and is commonly present in subjects with a class II facial pattern; this element can be used in contour analysis to define expected facial characteristics, including the patient's facial sex, in the decision of surgical techniques for lower facial contour augmentation or reduction.