Three-dimensional analysis of condylar hyperplasia with computed tomography.

Three-dimensional surface reconstruction imaging from CT scans was used to study the deformity of the mandible in six patients with mandibular asymmetry. High-resolution axial CT scans of the mandible were obtained using Somatom-DR3 (Siemens). COSMOZONE-2SA (Nikon) with PC-9801VX21 (NEC) was used to reconstruct the three-dimensional images. The six patients were divided into two groups. One group was classified as unilateral hybrid forms and the other group was classified hemimandibular elongation on the diagnostic criteria of Obwegeser and Makek (1986). In the three-dimensional surface reconstruction, exact location and the degree of the deformity in the region from the ascending ramus to the condylar head and the lingual aspect from the ascending ramus to the mandibular body were accurately represented. In addition, the three-dimensional images could be easily rotated arbitrarily, precise evaluation could be done at every part of the mandible. On diagnosis, the mandibular morphology classified into the unilateral hybrid forms was presumed to vary from case to case even in the same classification.