Correlation between symphyseal morphology and mandibular length in class 1 malocclusion between males and females: A radiographic study

Abstract

Mandibular symphysis (MS) morphology is a valuable diagnostic and treatment-planning tool in orthodontics. MS is affected by a number of factors that include neuromuscular factors, vertical jaw relationships, inclination of lower incisors and genetic factors among others. 80 lateral cephalograms (40 – males and 40 – females) were used in the study and mandibular lengths (Schwarz analysis) were measured for males and females separately. Pearson correlation coefficient showed no statistically significant correlation between symphyseal morphology and mandibular length both in males and females. The inter-examiner reliability (IER) showed Cronbach’s Alpha for mandibular length shows a value of .70 implying good agreement. The study concludes there is no correlation between mandibular length and symphysis morphology. Although sexual dimorphism exists.