Facial and hand landmark measurements for making accurate occlusal vertical dimension determinations

The aim of this study is to create a more accurate method of measurement for determining occlusal vertical dimension (OVD). Many dentists face difficulties in determining correct OVD, especially in fully edentulous patients or patients who no longer have stable tooth contact. Hayakawa has created a formula for predicting occlusal vertical dimensions in the Mongoloid race of the Japanese population, and earlier studies have been conducted by Kusdhany et al. on the Deutero-Malay race of Indonesia. This is a cross-sectional study, and the measurements of certain facial and hand landmarks are compared to the measurement of OVD from the base of nasal septum to the inferior of the chin (Sn-Gn). The facial landmarks measured are inner zygomatic distance (Zy-Zy), inner to outer eye corner distance, interpupillary distance (P-P), pupil to mouth corner distance (P-Ch), tragus to eye corner distance (Tr-Cn), vertical ear length, palm length, thumb length, index finger length, little finger length, and the width of four fingers. The result of this study is the following multivariate analysis-based formula for measuring OVD: Sn-Gn = 28.01 + 0.44 (P-P) + 0.29 (Tr-Cn) + (-0.23 (width of four fingers)) + 5.98 (sex) [unit mm]. This formula can be used as a baseline for creating a more accurate measurement of OVD in edentulous patients.