The Predictability of the Surgical Outcomes of Class III Patients in the Transverse Dimension—A Study of Three-Dimensional Assessment

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the outcomes of planned maxillary surgical movements in the transverse direction in patients possessing a Class III skeletal pattern. The available consecutive patients’ records were retrospectively reviewed. Only those possessing a Class III skeletal pattern, and for whom the same virtual planning system was used, were enrolled. The waferless technique was used to guide the jawbone repositioning. A representative triangle in the virtual maxilla of each stage was used to validate the planned surgical movements (PSMs) and the outcome discrepancy (OD). The linear and angular measurements were retrieved for the assessments of the correlation between PSM and OD. In total, 44 adult patients who met the inclusion criteria were studied. The average linear OD of the A-point in the transverse direction was 0.66 ± 0.54 mm, and the yaw correction showed 1.02 ± 0.84 degrees in difference. There was no specific correlation between the linear PSMs and ODs; however, the angular ones were positively correlated. With the help of the waferless technique to transfer the virtual planning results, the practitioners could confidently predict the postsurgical maxillary position in the transverse direction in the orthognathic surgery of Class III patients. However, the yaw correction should be carefully planned to avoid postsurgical instabilities.