Anatomical changes in the East Asian midface skeleton with aging.

PURPOSE: Understanding the aging process of the midface skeleton is considered crucial for correct facial rejuvenation. However, the canine fossa, an important morphological feature of the midface skeleton, has not yet been observed in connection with aging, despite the fact that it is the most main part of the maxillary bone. Here, the authors focus on the depression of the canine fossa to evaluate the Asian midface skeleton.

METHODS: Computed tomography (CT) scans of the facial skeleton of 114 Koreans (59 males and 55 females) were reconstructed to three-dimensional (3-D) images using a 3-D analysis software program. The study subjects included 27 young males, 32 old males, 28 young females and 27 old females. The angular measurements of 3 bony regions were measured for each 3-D model: the canine fossa angle (assessing depth of the canine fossa), the maxillary angle (assessing orientation of the lateral maxilla) and the piriform angle (assessing orientation of the medial maxilla).

RESULTS: The canine fossa angle showed a statistically significant decrease with aging in both sexes, indicating the canine fossa actually becomes more concave with age. In contrast, the maxillary and piriform angle showed statistically insignificant changes with aging in female subjects.

CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the canine fossa may be one of the effective markers to evaluate the anatomical changes to the facial skeleton with midface aging.