Comparative study of cranial anthropometric measurement by traditional calipers to computed tomography and three-dimensional photogrammetry

J Craniofac Surg. 2013 Jul;24(4):1106-10. doi: 10.1097/SCS.0b013e31828dcdcb.

Abstract

Craniofacial anthropometry by direct caliper measurements is a common method of quantifying the morphology of the cranial vault. New digital imaging modalities including computed tomography and three-dimensional photogrammetry are similarly being used to obtain craniofacial surface measurements. This study sought to compare the accuracy of anthropometric measurements obtained by calipers versus 2 methods of digital imaging.Standard anterior-posterior, biparietal, and cranial index measurements were directly obtained on 19 participants with an age range of 1 to 20 months. Computed tomographic scans and three-dimensional photographs were both obtained on each child within 2 weeks of the clinical examination. Two analysts measured the anterior-posterior and biparietal distances on the digital images. Measures of reliability and bias between the modalities were calculated and compared.Caliper measurements were found to underestimate the anterior-posterior and biparietal distances as compared with those of the computed tomography and the three-dimensional photogrammetry (P < 0.001). Cranial index measurements between the computed tomography and the calipers differed by up to 6%. The difference between the 2 modalities was statistically significant (P = 0.021). The biparietal and cranial index results were similar between the digital modalities, but the anterior-posterior measurement was greater with the three-dimensional photogrammetry (P = 0.002). The coefficients of variation for repeated measures based on the computed tomography and the three-dimensional photogrammetry were 0.008 and 0.007, respectively.In conclusion, measurements based on digital modalities are generally reliable and interchangeable. Caliper measurements lead to underestimation of anterior-posterior and biparietal values compared with digital imaging.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Cephalometry / instrumentation
  • Cephalometry / methods*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Male
  • Photogrammetry / methods*
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Skull / anatomy & histology*
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed / methods*