Discord Between the Facial and Maxillary Midline and Intermaxillary Midline Among the Population of Asir, Saudi Arabia

Objective: To determine the proportion of Saudi population in the Asir region that displayed discordance between the facial and maxillary midline and intermaxillary midline, to form an informative guideline for esthetic rehabilitation of patients. Material and Methods: We evaluated 2418 Saudi citizens using positioning guides of the orthopantomography machine to record the relationship of the dental midline to the facial midline. The relationship of the maxillary midline to that of the mandible was observed clinically, and diagnostic mounting of particular cases was performed for confirmation. The examination was carried out by four trained observers (two dentists and two radiology technicians) to overcome the parallax effect. The cases with disagreements were repeated. The record was grouped into (1) coincidence, (2) deviation of the mandible to the right, and (3) deviation to the left. The relationship between facial-dental midline concordance and intermaxillary concordance was assessed using the Chi-squared test. Results: Facial and maxillary midline did not coincide in 42.5% participants, whereas intermaxillary midline discordance was observed in 51.5%. Among those exhibiting discordance, 57% had right discordance and 43% had left discordance. Conclusion: A significant proportion of the population displayed discordance between the facial-maxillary midline as well as the intermaxillary midline. The female population showed not only a higher number of intermaxillary discordance than males but also a significant number of intermaxillary discordance towards the right.