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Three-dimensional study of growth and development of the nose
V F Ferrario1, C Sforza, C E Poggio
1Laboratorio di Anatomia Funzionale dell'Apparato Stomatognatico (LAFAS), Facoltà di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Milano, Italy.
Objective:
The aim of this study was to describe normal nasal growth in a large sample of boys and girls from 6 to 14 years of age, to compare nasal development at 14 years of age with its adult dimensions, and to evaluate differences in growth patterns between males and females.
Design:
Growth and development of the nose were analyzed through the three-dimensional facial morphometry method. One thousand thirteen examinations were performed on 402 children between 6 and 14 years of age and on 101 adults. Three-dimensional coordinates of five nasal landmarks were collected. Eleven parameters including nasal volume and external surface were calculated and averaged for age and sex.
Results:
Volume, surface, and linear distances were larger in males than in females, with the exception of the 11-to-12 age group, where a sharp female growth spurt was present. In males, the growth spurt was broader, and continued to 13 years of age at a nearly steady rate. Statistically significant gender differences could be found both in the adult group and before the adolescent growth spurt.
Conclusions:
Our findings are in general agreement with previous reports on craniofacial growth, which suggested a strong tendency in males for growth to continue for several years beyond that seen in females.