Surface Area Analysis in Edentulous Jaws of Patients with Skeletal Class I

The surface area of edentulous jaw is an important functional and anthropometric parameter. It can be analyzed directly in mouth, on jaw impressions, as well as on casts. The analysis of master cast provides valuable information about the surface area in edentulous jaws. However, preliminary-study cast made of “soft” alabaster dental plaster is usually utilized for this purpose [1-5]. The surface area of edentulous jaws has not been extensively studied by recent studies. During the assessment of maxillo-mandibular jaw relationships an inevitable and important step is to determine skeletal relations of upper and lower jaws in one of the following: skeletal class I (neutrorelation), skeletal class II – distal (retrognathic) or skeletal class III (prognathic) relation [6, 7, 8]. The aim of this study was to assess the surface area of supporting tissue in edentulous jaws of patients with the skeletal class I.