During the last 3 decades, the incidence of positional plagiocephaly and brachycephaly has increased. Treatment options are conservative and can include physiotherapy and molding helmet therapy. The decision to start therapy is based on patient history and subjective assessment of cranial shape by the physician and the parents. To determine the impact of these deformations on esthetic self-worth, as well as cranial shape, this study was conducted on a population of adult bald men.
Participants were asked to fill in a questionnaire about the amount of comments received on cranial shape, as well as grade their general esthetic and grade craniofacial features using a visual analogue scale. The cranial proportions and symmetry were measured using plagiocephalometry.
50 adult bald men were included in this study. The prevalence of nonsynostotic plagiocephaly was 12%; the prevalence of nonsynostotic brachycephaly was 0%. No significant correlation was found between plagiocephaly or brachycephaly, cranial circumference, width or length and amount of comments on cranial shape, cosmetic assessment of appearance or cosmetic assessment of cranial shape. On average, teeth and eyes were given the highest cosmetic value, eyebrows and chin were given the lowest scores.
Cranial shape does not have a significant impact on the amount of comments received on cranial shape, nor the cosmetic assessment of either overall appearance or cranial shape in bald men. For bald men, eyes and teeth are more important craniofacial features in cosmetic assessment. There is no clear esthetic need to treat deviating cranial shape with helmet therapy in male patients.
