Normal variation of mandibular asymmetry in children

Abstract

AbstractObjectiveTo explore the normal variation of asymmetry in mandibles of children in the age group of 1 to 12 years.Materials and MethodsThe study group consisted of 92 cadaveric mandibles of children with a dental age of 1 to 12 years old in possession of ACTA (Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam), Faculty of Dentistry, the Netherlands. 3D models of the mandibles were obtained from CT‐scans and hemimandibular volumes of all mandibles were calculated. The condylar height, ramus height, mandibular body length and the gonial angle were bilaterally determined using a novel landmark‐based method, and the degree of asymmetry was calculated.ResultsNo relationship was found between dental age and asymmetry of the studied parameters (P < .05). The highest degree of asymmetry was found in the ramus height, whereas the gonial angle presented the lowest degree of asymmetry. A positive correlation was found between the asymmetry of the hemimandibular volume vs the height of the ramus (P < .05) and the length of the mandibular body (P < .05). An inverse correlation was found between the asymmetry of the ramus height vs the condylar height (P < .05), mandibular body length (P < .05) and gonial angle (P < .05).ConclusionsMandibular asymmetries in children did occur (9.8% of the included mandibles presented with a relevant overall asymmetry of ≥3%) and were unrelated to age. The different segments of the mandible seem to compensate for each other, in order to maintain a functional equilibrium.