Statement of problem: Determining the vertical dimension of occlusion for an edentulous patient depends on clinical judgment and the skill and experience of the dentist. Though many methods have been advocated, a universally accepted method of determining the vertical dimension of occlusion in edentulous patients is lacking.
Purpose: This clinical study aimed to find a correlation between the intercondylar distance and occlusal vertical dimension in dentate individuals.
Material and methods: This study was conducted on 258 dentate individuals aged 18 to 30 years. The Denar posterior reference point was used to determine the center of the condyle. The posterior reference point was marked on either side of the face with this scale, and the intercondylar width between these 2 posterior reference points was measured with custom digital vernier calipers. A modified Willis gauge was used to measure the occlusal vertical dimension from the base of the nose to the lower border of the chin when the teeth were in maximum intercuspation. The relationship between the ICD and OVD was analyzed with the Pearson correlation test. Simple regression analysis was used to formulate a regression equation.
Results: The mean intercondylar distance was 133.5 mm, and the mean occlusal vertical dimension was 55.4 mm. A statistically significant correlation (R=0.619) was found between the intercondylar distance and occlusal vertical dimension in the study population (P<.001).
Conclusions: A significant correlation was found between the intercondylar distance and occlusal vertical dimension of the participants. Occlusal vertical dimension may be predicted from the intercondylar distance by using a regression model.
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