Relevance between the facial morphology and nasal index: analysis of 210 young Han women in Henan

Objective To investigate the relationship between the facial morphology and the nasal shape for young women of Han nationality in Henan. Methods Aiming at the female conscripts in Henan province in 2016, 210 healthy young females were enrolled in this study, and their anthropometric features were measured including height, weight, total head height, physiognomic facial height, morphological facial height, upper lip height, lip height, facial width, mandibular width, mouth breadth, nasal height, nasal length, nasal depth, and width of nose. The nasal indexes were divided into 5 groups according to different facial types. And their mean and standard deviation were calculated. The differences were analyzed by SPSS version 21.0. Results Among the indexes measured, there were significant differences in height, face height, shape face height, upper lip height, face width, mandibular width, head height/face width, face height/face width, shape face height/face width and nose index; P values were significant. The classification of facial types was based on the ratio of morphological surface index to area width, and the main types of the groups were mid-facial and narrow-facial types. The differences among different facial types were statistically significant (F=12.75, P<0.05). The scatter plot showed that there was a linear correlation between nasal index and facial shape. Linear regression analysis showed that the linear equation Y=135.84-75.5X (X is the ratio of morphological index to facial width, Y is the nasal index). Conclusions Nasal type is related to the face type. The linear fitting equation between morphological facial height/facial width and nasal index is Y=135.84-75.5x. These findings may enrich the external nasal database, provide reference for the correction of nasal deformity and nasal reconstruction, and direct the clinical therapy. Key words: Face; Nose; Body measurement; Han nationality; Women; Henan