CRANIOFACIAL MORPHOLOGIC PATTERNS RELAYED TO DIFFERENT FACIAL TYPES IN KOREAN ADULTS : A CEPHALOMETRIC ANALYSIS

한국인 성인 안면두개골의 형태적 분류와 특징두부방사선 계측학적 연구

The purpose of the present study was to investigate craniofacial patterns in Korean male and female adults, and to compare morphologic differences between different facial types. In order to get configurational groupings, standardized lateral and P-A cephalograms of 174 Korean adults were measured and analyzed with seven angular, nineteen linear, four ratio, and two index measurements. Ward's minimum variance cluster analysis was employed to divide the sample into groups having similar craniofacial morphology, and thereafter, inductive statistics(t-test) was used to characterize morphologic differences of the divided groups. And also, Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to assess correlation between the cranial dimensions and upper/lower anterior facial height(UAFH, LAFH) in each facial types for both male and female The results were as follows; 1. There existed sexual dimorphism in most of variables except SN-FH angle, palatal plane angle, facial axis angle, facial index, lower anterior facial height ratio and upper facial height ratio. 2. A brachycephalic headform ($0.84{\pm}0.05$) with leptoprosopic facial form ($0.92{\pm}0.05$) was appeared in male, and a mesocephalic headform ($0.86{\pm}0.06$) with leptoprosopic facial form ($0.92{\pm}0.04$) was exhibited in female. 3. Facial types in both male and female subjects were divided into two groups, Group A (mesoprosopic facial type) and Group B (leptoprosopic facial type). The morphologic differences between Group A and Group B were as follows: a. Cranial measurements including index, angular and linear measurements were not found to be different between Group A and Group B in both sexes. b. Increased UAFH, LAFH, and upper/lower anterior dental heights were exhibited in Group Bs of both male and female. c. In both male and female, ramus height and mandible length showed no difference between Group A and Group B. However, genial angle was found to be larger in Group B than Group A. Therefore, the morphologic differences between two groups in male and female were closely related to less favorable anatomic morphology of the mandible. 4. LAFH and UAFH showed no relationships with cranial dimensions in male and female.