Introduction:

The face is the anatomical support for the functioning of the senses and the cornerstone for social integration. The biological paradigm is maintained as the basis for the theoretical conceptualization of facial deformities, while the biopsychosocial approach to health is not strongly evidenced for facial deformities, a narrative review of the literature was carried out in the databases: SciELO , PubMed, Redalyc and Infomed and with the academic Google search engine.

Objective:

Assess the concepts that are exposed in the scientific literature and propose the most integrative.

Development:

Strengths and limitations of 12 exposed concepts are addressed according to the approach of each author, within an updated scientific context, as well as how the concept evolves from the biological to the sociomedical approach, from the first definitions that did not refer to the impact. psychosocial of the deformities or were not inclusive with the entire facial region, up to the most integrative definitions at the discretion of the authors and supported by studies by other researchers.

Conclusions:

The concept of facial deformity has evolved from a biological paradigm to a sociomedical one. The extension to the entire facial region, as well as the patients' perception of themselves and how society assumes and integrates them, must be part of the theoretical problem to be conceptualized. The authors propose the concept exposed by Blanco and others, considering it the most integrative; recommend it for content validation studies and subsequent use in clinical practice.

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