Radiographic cephalometry has been one of the most important diagnostic tools in orthodontics, since its introduction in the early 1930s by Broadbent in the United States and Hofrath in Germany. Generations of orthodontists have relied on the interpretation of these images for their diagnosis and treatment planning as well as for the long-term follow-up of growth and treatment results. Also in the planning for surgical orthodontic corrections of jaw discrepancies, lateral and antero-posterior cephalograms have been valuable tools. For these purposes numerous cephalometric analyses are available. However, a major drawback of the existing technique is that it renders only a two-dimensional representation of a three-dimensional structure.
