Objective — to estimate midface soft tissue changes after osteotomy of zygomatic bones. Material and methods. The study involved 20 female patients with skeletal malocclusion class II and III. Zy—zy distance (bone and soft tissue) was assessed in pre- and postoperative period. Results and conclusion. Cephalometric analysis showed mean growth of soft tissues in lateral projection of zygomatic areas in relation to fragment expansion rate near 22.07%. At the same time, soft tissue growth in lateral projection of zygomatic areas in relation to zygomatic arch was at least 166.67%. Therefore, osteotomy of zygomatic bones is a rather effective method to enlarge lateral projection of zygomatic bones.

Keywords. orthognathic surgery, midface, zygomatic bones, osteotomy