Abstract
Facial symmetry plays an important role in facial attractiveness and is one of the
major criteria used to determine attractiveness in humans. In craniomaxillofacial
surgery, facial symmetry is one of the main considerations. The aim of this study
was to determine anthropometric measurements quantitatively and investigate the relationship
between facial symmetry and attractiveness in a local Malay population. The study
included 30 photographed Malay individuals and 100 photograph assessors, all aged
between 18 and 26 years. The assessors indicated their preferences regarding the more
attractive face on original and manipulated (symmetrical face) photographs. None of
the photographed subjects had a perfectly symmetrical face (asymmetry index (AI) of
0%); 33.3% of the photographed subjects had an AI in the range of 1.6–2.0%. The majority
of assessors chose the manipulated symmetrical face as the most attractive (manipulated
photograph selected in 91.2% of cases). As facial symmetry is considered a critical
factor in attractiveness, it is beneficial to consider balance and symmetry prior
to facial reconstruction. The AI values found in this study may be useful as guidance
to determine the normal minimum balance of facial symmetry. No AI values indicating
perfect symmetry were observed for the unedited facial anthropometric measurements.
However, the projection of a perfectly symmetrical face does influence the perception
of facial attractiveness.
Keywords
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: October 08, 2022
Accepted:
September 26,
2022
Publication stage
In Press Corrected ProofIdentification
Copyright
© 2022 International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
