| The face plays a key role in communication and interaction with the environment. This part of the body has been extensively studied by scientists, clinicians, artists, and many who have tried to measure and reproduce some of the facial characteristics, not the least of which has been beauty. Esthetic criteria appear to have been defined in almost all cultures, but the actual presence of codified facial dimensions, angles, and ratios in attractive people is still a matter of debate. Scientific research on the quantitative, measurable bases of facial attractiveness is, therefore, still in progress.Attractiveness is also becoming a matter of concern during childhood. Currently, Facial appearance during function has a major impact on how a person is perceived in society. Children with a non-attractive face are considered less intelligent, and are more likely to be isolated and underscored than children with an attractive face, even by their peers. A beautiful face is often considered the key to success, and patients look for medical modifications of non-attractive dento-facial physiognomies. Consequently, for individuals with facial functional or movement impairments,methods for analyzing these impairments are useful in diagnosis, treatment planning, and outcome assessment of surgical rehabilitative procedures.Orthodontists, therefore, face an increasing demand for treatments mainly based on aesthetic requests, and should approach the problem with the most advanced instruments and methods for diagnosis and treatment planning. Indeed, while technology today offers very advanced methods for treatment, orthodontic diagnosis still remains an art, widely relying on subjective evaluations of the facial soft tissues. Conventional two-dimensional measurements based on photographs or on radiographic profile projections,has been raised doubt on the validity of such measurements and should be supplemented by three-dimensional analyses.Facial three-dimensional imaging is a novel field for dentistry, and it is becoming a useful tool for both clinicians and researchers. As recently reviewed, the development of different techniques for 3D reproduction of facial topography such as laser-based scanners or structured light-based scanners,significantly changed the process of diagnosis by providing a lot of facial anatomical details.Three-dimensional reconstruction, which has the potential to compensate for the inadequacies of a 2D image, has great potential for the diagnosis of patient abnormalities and for syndrome delineation.The aim of this study was to identify possible aesthetic characteristics in facial size and shape of attractive Chinese man by laser-based scanners.Objective: To compare the facial characteristics of attractive Chinese men with those of reference men.Methods: The three-dimensional coordinates of 50 facial landmarks were collected in 40 healthy reference men and in 40 "attractive" men, soft tissue facial angles, distances, areas, and volumes were computed and compared using analysis of variance.Results:When compared with reference men, attractive men shared several similar facial characteristics: relatively large forehead, reduced mandible, and rounded face. They had a more acute soft tissue profile, an increased upper facial width and middle facial depth, larger mouth, and more voluminous lips than reference men.Conclusions:Attractive men had several facial characteristics suggesting babyness.Nonetheless, each group of men was characterized by a different development of these features. Esthetic reference values can be a useful tool for clinicians, but should always consider the characteristics of individual faces. |
PDF Full Text Request