ANALYSIS OF FACIAL BONE STRUCTURE SYMMETRY IN ADULT INDIVIDUALS BASED ON RADIOGRAPHIC EXAMINATION DATA

Nowadays, radiological methods are widely used across various fields of medicine and often serve as the "gold standard" for diagnostics and treatment monitoring."Incidental findings" and individual structural features revealed during screening or preventive examinations enable the identification of age-, sex-, and constitutionrelated anatomical patterns, as well as structural and functional characteristics of organs and regions that may act as potential catalysts for the development of pathological changes.The aim of the study: to determine the frequency of facial bone structure asymmetry as detected by radiographic examination.Object and research methods.The study was conducted using 100 panoramic radiographs of the maxillofacial region from adult individuals (50 males and 50 females), selected through randomization.The following features were assessed: nasal septum deviation, symmetry of the paranasal sinuses (maxillary and frontal), orbits, temporomandibular joints (TMJ), and dental arches.Research results and their discussion.Only 23% of the examined adult population had no pronounced signs of asymmetry in the evaluated facial skeletal structures.Asymmetric edentulism was identified in 70% of cases, nasal septum deviation in 61%, frontal sinus asymmetry in 56%, maxillary sinus asymmetry in 30%, TMJ asymmetry in 38%, and orbital asymmetry in 8%.The frequency distribution of asymmetry manifestations across different facial structures was similar in men and women, but the prevalence was generally higher in males.No cases of isolated asymmetry in a single structure were recorded.In 20% of cases, asymmetric edentulism was accompanied by TMJ asymmetry.In 6% of cases, asymmetric edentulism coincided with nasal septum deviation, TMJ asymmetry, and maxillary sinus asymmetry.In 10% of cases, simultaneous manifestations of nasal septum deviation, and asymmetry of the maxillary and frontal sinuses were observed.A combination of asymmetric edentulism, nasal septum deviation, TMJ asymmetry, maxillary and frontal sinus asymmetry, and orbital asymmetry was detected in only 1% of the sample.Conclusions.Only 23% of adult individuals show no pronounced signs of facial skeletal asymmetry.Asymmetric edentulism is the most frequent type of facial bone structure asymmetry (70%), while orbital asymmetry is the least common (8%).Males exhibit facial skeletal asymmetry more frequently than females.No cases of isolated asymmetry in a single structure were recorded.Asymmetric edentulism is most often combined with other types of asymmetry.