ArticlePediatric rheumatology online journal2020
Quantitative analysis of facial asymmetry based on three-dimensional photography: a valuable indicator for asymmetrical temporomandibular joint affection in juvenile idiopathic arthritis patients?
Article in Pediatric rheumatology online journal, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- Automated assessment of 3D facial asymmetry: a systematic review.European journal of orthodontics · 2026Pooled it
- Anatomical References for the Study of 3D Facial Photographs: A Scoping Review and Proposed Preliminary Framework for Comprehensive Facial Evaluation.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Age-Related Osseous Measures of the Temporomandibular Joint and Mandibular Ramus During Childhood Assessed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging.Orthodontics & craniofacial research · 2026Article
- Improving early detection of temporomandibular joint involvement in juvenile idiopathic arthritis with a clinically interpretable machine learning model.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Three-Dimensional Stereophotogrammetry Facial Morphologic Signatures of Temporomandibular Disorders.Journal of oral pathology & medicine : official publication of the International Association of Oral Pathologists and the American Academy of Oral Pathology · 2025Article
- Three-dimensional evaluation of facial asymmetry and its association to occlusal and muscular imbalance in young women.Journal of clinical and experimental dentistry · 2024Article
- Disc Displacement of the Temporomandibular Joint and Facial Asymmetry in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Assessing the Reliability of the OMERACT Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Magnetic Resonance Scoring System for Temporomandibular Joints (JAMRIS-TMJ).Journal of clinical medicine · 2021Article
- Recent progress in the treatment of non-systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis.Faculty reviews · 2021Review
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundJuvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) can cause osseous deformity in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and may impair mandibular growth. This study aimed to evaluate whether facial asymmetry determined clinically or by morphometric analysis of three-dimensional (3D) photographs in JIA patients is associated with an asymmetric affection of theTMJ.
methodsOf 76 consecutive JIA patients with a mean age of 11.7 years (range: 6.3-17.9), facial asymmetry was evaluated clinically (chin asymmetry, gonion asymmetry), and stereophotogrammetrically with 3D photographs. The facial surfaces were demarcated, then mirrored, superimposed using semi-automated landmarks, and quantitatively assessed (chin asymmetry, Hausdorff distances). Clinical and digital measurements were related to the diagnosis of right and left TMJ involvement derived from magnetic resonance images (MRI).
resultsTwenty-seven (34%) patients had an asymmetrical osseous deformity of the TMJ. By clinical evaluation, chin asymmetry was related to asymmetrical osseous destruction (p = 0.02), but gonion asymmetry was not (p = 0.14). In regard to 3D-photograph based morphometric measurements, chin asymmetry was also related to asymmetrical osseous destruction (p = 0.01), but neither the mean (p = 0.06) nor the maximal Hausdorff distance (p = 0.67). Despite the attested significance, none of the chin asymmetry evaluation methods appeared to hold sufficient predictive value (positive predictive values ≤54%; coefficient of determination ≤7%).
conclusionsFor the assessment of facial asymmetry in JIA patients, morphometric measurements originating from 3D-photographs seem to deliver results comparable to the clinical assessment methods. The asymmetry of the face, especially around the chin, appears to be related to asymmetrical TMJ destruction, but none of the investigated measurement methods of the face were able to reliably predict the TMJ affection. Thus, facial asymmetry assessments, both qualitatively in a clinical setting and quantitatively based on 3D-photographs, have limited diagnostic value for TMJ involvement in JIA patients.
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