Three-Dimensional Dental Analysis in Subjects with Skeletal Malocclusion: A Retrospective Observational Study.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between skeletal class and dental dimensions analyzed through linear, surface area, and volumetric measurements. The sample consisted of 90 patients with an average age of 18 years (44 > x > 12). The following tests were used to investigate any correlation between skeletal class and tooth size: Hoeffding's test, Cramér's V test, and analysis of variance (ANOVA), followed by Tukey's post hoc HSD test and the logit model. The significance level was set at 0.050. Cramér's V test indicated a weak association between skeletal class (I, II, III) and total Bolton index (V = 0.167, < 0.01). The ANOVA results showed that the total inferior volume and the anterior inferior volume were significantly greater ( = 0.012; = 0.012) in skeletal class III ( = 0.012) than in the other two skeletal classes. The total upper surface area was significantly greater in patients with skeletal class III compared to those with classes II and I ( = 0.029). The anterior superior surface area was significantly greater in skeletal class III than in class II and I ( = 0.028). From the results of the logit analysis, it is possible to state that the third model is able to explain greater variability (21%) in terms of the distribution of results for the variables considered than the first (20%) and the second (14%). Class III skeletal malocclusions are characterized by increased tooth surface and volumetric dimensions compared to class I and class II.