Growth of the human mandibular angular process: A functional cranial analysis

Abstract

Abstract The angular process of the human mandible alters its inclination with age, changing from a medial to a lateral flare during the transition from the neonatal to the adult stages. The morphological change in this mandibular skeletal unit is shown to be associated with a change in orientation of a portion of the related functional matrix, the masseter muscle. This change to an oblique line of action from an originally vertical one is associated with an increase in the functional movement of protraction at the temporo‐mandibular joint. No other physiological parameters of muscle function seemingly are associated with this skeletal alteration. The processes of interaction between the functional matrix and its related skeletal are as yet unknown.