Evaluation of Intercondylar Distance as a Predictor of Vertical Dimension in Edentulous Patients: A Cross-sectional Comparative Study.

AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the applicability of intercondylar distance (ICD) measurement in determining the vertical dimension of occlusion in edentulous patients.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

The first part of the study included 250 dentulous individuals visiting the departmental OPD and the students of the institute (aged 18-40 years) of both genders. Intercondylar distance was measured at the Denar reference point, and occlusal vertical dimension (OVD) was measured between the subnasion and the gnathion during maximum intercuspation. A regression equation was formulated based on the ICD-OVD relationship. The second part involved 40 edentulous patients (20 males, 20 females). Occlusal vertical dimension was assessed using conventional methods (OVD1) and the ICD-based method (OVD2), and their agreement was analyzed.

RESULTS

The first part of the study revealed a significant relationship between ICD-OVD (p < 0.001) with a 0.319 mm OVD increase per 1 mm ICD increase in dentulous participants. However, the second part of the study showed a low concordance correlation coefficient (CCC = 0.243) with a mean bias of -0.773 mm in edentulous participants. Gender differences in OVD were significant (p < 0.001), with males showing higher values than females in edentulous participants.

CONCLUSION

Despite low concordance with conventional methods, the ICD method for determining OVD has shown consistent applicability across genders and edentulous durations, thus underscoring its clinical relevance.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Determining the OVD in complete dentures lacks a universal method. The ICD-OVD relationship and its application in edentulous patients remain unclear. Individual differences in recording the OVD using the conventional method can be eliminated with the implementation of the ICD-based method. This method holds clinical promise across genders and edentulous durations.