Aim:

Determine simple visual parameters to evaluate skeletal characteristics related to facial types in lateral teleradiographs.

Materials and Methods:

Descriptive cross-sectional study. A printed visual guideline about the eight visible morphological characteristics of the facial skeleton in cephalometric x-rays was created. The guideline was given to 69 undergraduate dental students (fifth year) without previous studies in cephalometric to analyze it for 10 minutes. Immediately after, they were shown a series of teleradiographs and were asked to evaluate 8 characteristics through a series of options presented in a visual scale according to the guideline. The answers were recorded through a digital audience response system (clickers). The data obtained were analyzed with the Rasch method to assess each item level of difficulty, establishing the Logit number for each one.

Results:

The students identified and graded without difficulty 5 of the 8 characteristics. These were: Chin projection (-2.49), Facial divergence (-2.85), Mandibular ramus width (-1.97), Sigmoid notch (-0.96) and Mandibular body with ramus relationship (-0.06).

Conclusions:

Five facial osseous morphological characteristics related to the facial types can be identified and graded without difficulty by undergraduate dental students. This information may be used to create a facial type identification scale.

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