Assessment of relationship between the facial height and sagittal position of the glenoid fossa in subjects with Class II malocclusion associated with mandibular retrusion

The relationship of the mandible to the cranial base influences both sagittal and vertical facial disharmonies. The aim of the present study was to analyze the relationship between facial height and sagittal position of the glenoid fossa in subjects with Class II malocclusion associated with mandibular retrusion.

This descriptive-analytical study was carried out on 60 subjects (21 males and 39 females, aged 7‒12 years), with Class II malocclusion associated with mandibular retrusion, who had different facial heights (normal, short, long). The cephalometric measurements were carried out based on three parameters of GF-S on FH, GF-PTM on FH and GF-FMN. Data were analyzed by SPSS16 using one-way ANOVA and Duncan analysis (α = 0.05).

The means of GF-FMN distances in subjects with short, normal and long faces were 72.6 mm, 70.4 mm and 69 mm, respectively. The means of GF-S distances on FH in the three groups were 11.6 mm, 12.7 mm and 11.27 mm, respectively and the means of GF-PTM distances on FH were 30.09 mm, 28.6 mm and 28 mm, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences in the sagittal position of glenoid fossa between the three groups (p values < 0.05). There were significant differences between long and short faces in the GF-FMN distance (p value = 0.048).

Under the limitations of this study there was no significant relationship between facial height and the sagittal position of glenoid fossa in subjects with Class II malocclusion associated with mandibular retrusion.