Correlation between cranial base morphology and skeletal malocclusion using cone beam computed tomography: a cross-sectional study

Purpose To investigate the relationship between cranial base morphology and maxillomandibular in various types of skeletal malocclusion using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) analysis on a sample of Yemeni population.Materials and methods A retrospective cross-sectional study of pre-existent CBCT images of 94 Yemeni subjects aged 14–55 year-old (46 males & 48 females). The grouping of subjects in Steiner’s analysis is based on the ANB angle and classified into different genders. The study conducted CBCT analysis of cranial base angles and linear measurements of the cranial and maxillomandibular bases in sagittal, coronal and 3D planes.Results The anterior cranial width (ACW) was a statisticaly significant longer in Class III malocclusion than Class II malocclusion (p = 0.008). The cranial base angle CBA (N-S-Ba) was significantly greater in females than males in Class II (p < 0.05). Moreover, the anterior cranial base length ACBL (N-S) dimension was significantly longer in males than females in both Class I and Class II malocclusions (p < 0.001,p < 0.01; respectively). The posterior cranial base length PCBL (S-Ba) dimension was significantly longer in males than females in Class I malocclusion (p < 0.001). The total cranial base length TCBL (N-Ba) dimension was significantly longer in males than females in both Class I and Class III malocclusions (p < 0.001, p < 0.05; respectively).Conclusion The linear cranial base dimensions and maxillomandibular width measurements revealed that males generally exhibited longer measurements than females in all classes. However, the cranial base angle in males tended to be smaller than in females in Class I and Class II.