Study of lower facial height

Cephalometric standards used to evaluate the lower third of the face, when applied to patients with developmental patterns different from those established as normal, can hinder the diagnosis and treatment of patients who need orthodontic therapy. In order to cephalometrically analyze, in teleradiographs, the actual participation of the maxillary, mandibular, and upper and lower dentoalveolar components in the composition of the anteroinferior facial height, 40 teleradiographs were used from a sample composed of patients with Angle Class I and Class II malocclusions, aged between 18 and 28 years, who had not undergone previous orthodontic treatment and with AFAI measurements ranging from 45 mm to 80 mm and ANB ranging from 0 to 8 . It was concluded that the dentoalveolar and bone components are interconnected in the composition of AFAI, so that, in the deficiency of one and/or the other, malocclusion is expressed in a vertical direction.