The orolabial region frequently undergoes significant changes following trauma, orthognathic surgery or orthodontics. Ethnicity, age and gender specific normative data are needed during the planning phase before surgical interventions in this region. In 2008 the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery published anthropometric lip measurements of Chinese children; however such reference data for Chinese young adults are currently unavailable. Therefore this cross-sectional study using 3-D facial photographs acquired from 103 healthy Chinese young adults with Class I skeletal pattern was conducted to deliver normative data for this age group. Anthropometric landmarks were identified on these 3-D images and linear, angular measurements as well as proportions were calculated. It was found that all orolabial measurements were significantly higher in males other than the labiomental angle. No gender differences were found in the anthropometric proportions. This study established the orolabial anthropometric normative data for Chinese young adults. These norms can be used to objectively evaluate the morphology of the lips during diagnosis, treatment planning and assessment of treatment outcomes.
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