title: Nasal Septal Deviation and Facial Skeletal Asymmetries.
abstract: During ontogeny, the nasal septum exerts a morphogenetic influence on the surrounding facial skeleton. While the influence of the septum is well established in long snouted animal models, its role in human facial growth is less clear. If the septum is a facial growth center in humans, we would predict that deviated septal growth would be associated with facial skeletal asymmetries. Using computed tomographic (CT) scans of n = 55 adult subjects, the purpose of this study was to test whether there is a correlation between septal deviation and facial asymmetries using three-dimensional (3D) geometric morphometric techniques. We calculated deviation as a percentage of septal volume relative to the volume of a modeled non-deviated septum. We then recorded skeletal landmarks representing the nasal, palatal, and lateral facial regions. Landmark data were superimposed using Procrustes analysis. First, we examined the correlation between nasal septal deviation and the overall magnitude of asymmetry. Next, we assessed whether there was a relationship between nasal septal deviation and more localized aspects of asymmetry using multivariate regression analysis. Our results indicate that while there was no correlation between septal deviation and the overall magnitude of asymmetry, septal deviation was associated with asymmetry primarily in the nasal floor and the palatal region. Septal deviation was unassociated with asymmetries in the lateral facial skeleton. Though we did not test the causal relationship between nasal septal deviation and facial asymmetry, our results suggest that the nasal septum may have an influence on patterns of adult facial form.
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa - Orthodontics, S219 Dental Science Building, Iowa City, Iowa.
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hartman
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa - Orthodontics, S219 Dental Science Building, Iowa City, Iowa.|The University of Iowa - Anthropology, 114 Macbride Hall, Iowa City, Iowa.
authors.forename: Nathan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Holton
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa - Dows Institute for Dental Research, N444B Dental Science Building, Iowa City.
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.affiliation: Metropolitan State University of Denver - Sociology and Anthropology, Campus Box 28, P.O. Box 173362, Denver, Colorado.
authors.forename: Todd
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yokley
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa - Orthodontics, S219 Dental Science Building, Iowa City, Iowa.
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Marshall
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa - Orthodontics, S219 Dental Science Building, Iowa City, Iowa.
authors.forename: Sreedevi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Srinivasan
authors.affiliation: The University of Iowa - Orthodontics, S219 Dental Science Building, Iowa City, Iowa.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Southard
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005146:Facial Asymmetry / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005147:Facial Bones / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009300:Nasal Septum / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: facial skeleton; geometric morphometrics; ontogeny