Three-dimensional analysis of modeled facial aging and sexual dimorphism from juvenile to senile age

Abstract Factors such as growth, aging, and health have known associations with changes in facial soft tissues. A detailed understanding of facial soft tissue ontogenetic development is important in a variety of scientific disciplines dealing with facial reconstruction, forensic identification, and ageing prediction. The main goals of this study were (1) to use geometric morphometrics to model facial aging, (2) to model the development of shape facial sexual dimorphism, and (3) to use classic morphometrics to depict facial differences between individual age categories. Our study was based on the form and shape analysis of three-dimensional facial surface models of 456 individuals aged 14–83 years. The facial models were obtained using a structured light-based optical scanner and divided into four age categories (juvenile, younger adult, middle adult, and older adult). The methodology was based on geometric and classic morphometrics including multivariate statistics. Aging in both sexes shared common traits such as more pronounced facial roundness reducing facial convexity, sagging soft tissue, smaller visible areas of the eyes, greater nose, and thinner lips. Male faces exhibited more even and intense ageing changes. Sexual dimorphic traits tended to diminish in the frontal and orbitonasal area and increase in the gonial area.