Journal of the Formosan Medical Association
Volume 105, Issue 2 , Pages 147-154, 2006

Thin-plate Spline Analysis of the Effects of Face Mask Treatment in Children with Maxillary Retrognathism

  • Pao-Hsin Liu

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Cheng-Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, R.O.C.
    • ,
  • Hong-Po Chang

      Affiliations

    • Department of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, R.O.C.
    • ,
  • Chih-Han Chang

      Affiliations

    • Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Cheng-Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, R.O.C.

School of Dentistry, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Received 21 January 2005; received in revised form 17 March 2005; accepted 5 July 2005.

Article Outline

Background

Face mask therapy is indicated for growing patients who suffer from maxillary retrognathia. Most previous studies used conventional cephalometric analysis to evaluate the effects of face mask treatment. Cephalometric analysis has been shown to be insufficient for complex craniofacial configurations. The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in the craniofacial structure of children with maxillary retrognathism following face mask treatment by means of thin-plate spline analysis.

Methods

Thirty children with skeletal Class III malocclusions who had been treated with face masks were compared with a group of 30 untreated gender-matched, age-matched, observation period-matched, and craniofacial configuration-matched subjects. Average geometries, scaled to an equivalent size, were generated by means of Procrustes analysis. Thin-plate spline analysis was then performed for localization of the shape changes.

Results

Face mask treatment induced a forward displacement of the maxilla, a counterclockwise rotation of the palatal plane, a horizontal compression of the anterior border of the symphysis and the condylar region, and a downward deformation of the menton. The cranial base exhibited a counterclockwise deformation as a whole.

Conclusion

We conclude that thin-plate spline analysis is a valuable supplement to conventional cephalometric analysis.

Key Words:  face mask , malocclusion angle class III , maxilla , retrognathism

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PII: S0929-6646(09)60336-3

doi:10.1016/S0929-6646(09)60336-3

Journal of the Formosan Medical Association
Volume 105, Issue 2 , Pages 147-154, 2006

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