title: Soft tissue changes after mandibular setback and bimaxillary surgery in Class III patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the relationship between soft tissue and bone structure for Class III patients before and after bilateral sagittal split osteotomy (BSSO) and bimaxillary orthognathic surgery; to determine the impact of other factors on soft tissue change; and to evaluate correlations between thickness of tissue before surgery, SNA, SNB, and ANB angles, and soft tissue changes.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included 78 Class III patients treated only with BSSO or with BSSO and Le Fort I osteotomy. Lateral cephalograms were taken before and 3 months to 1 year after surgery. After all points of the Zagreb82 and Legan and Burstone profile analysis were traced, the ratio of five soft tissue points before and after surgery was evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Soft tissue between points Sn and A and upper lip showed statistically significant changes for patients treated with bimaxillary surgery and BSSO. Only gender had an influence on soft tissue change. The correlation between soft tissue thickness and changes after surgery was significant. A change in SNB angle correlated with upper lip thickness for patients treated with BSSO but not for patients treated with BSSO and Le Fort I. SNA angle changes correlated with soft tissue changes between points Sn and A.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results of this study show soft tissue changes after BSSO and BSSO and Le Fort I and eliminate the deficiencies that were indicated in the meta-analysis of soft tissue changes from a previous study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Dubrava, Zagreb, Croatia. drjokic@gmail.com
authors.forename: Davor
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jokić
authors.forename: Dražen
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jokić
authors.forename: Vedran
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Uglešić
authors.forename: Darko
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Macan
authors.forename: Predrag
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Knežević
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D002508:Cephalometry / Q000379:methods; D005145:Face / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008313:Malocclusion, Angle Class III / Q000601:surgery*; D008334:Mandible / Q000601:surgery*; D008437:Maxilla / Q000601:surgery*; D019340:Osteotomy, Le Fort / Q000379:methods*; D059229:Osteotomy, Sagittal Split Ramus / Q000379:methods*; D012737:Sex Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult