Association Of Soft Tissue Facial Form & Dental Arch Form: A Cross Sectional Comparative Study

: Objective: Clinical preformed arch wires are routinely used by the orthodontist irrespective of the face types which raises a question on post treatment stability, esthetics, and periodontal health. The purpose of this study was to find out the association between soft tissue facial form and arch form and to find out particular arch form for particular face form. Material & Methods: Three hundred untreated adults (140 males and 160 females) whose initial records were taken for orthodontic treatment were included in this study. Mean age of the patient was 20 ±4 years. The subjects were classified into three different groups on the basis of soft tissue facial form. Soft tissue facial form was determined using Adobe photoshop and each subject was assigned to one of the three group according to facial index. Arch form was determined by the of method occlusogram and arch forms were divided into three groups, tapered, ovoid and square. Results: Regarding the distribution of facial form in the entire sample of 300 subjects, 39 percent of the individuals had mesofacial soft tissue facial form followed by dolichofacial (34%) and brachyfacial (27%). Considering the entire sample size, the most frequent arch form in maxilla was tapered and ovoid in mandible. In dolichofacial individuals the most predominant arch form was tapered while in brachyfacial individuals, square arch form was common. Mesofacial soft tissue facial form shows the predominance of both square and ovoid arch forms. The overall result shows a non-significant association between facial form and arch form. Conclusion: No significant association was found between soft tissue facial form and dental arch form.