• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제54권1호
• /
• pp.25-31
• /
• 2024

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to clarify the panoramic image differences of cleft alveolus patients with or without a cleft palate, with emphases on the visibility of the line formed by the junction between the nasal septum and nasal floor(the upper line) and the appearances of the maxillary lateral incisor. Materials and Methods: Panoramic radiographs of 238 patients with cleft alveolus were analyzed for the visibility of the upper line, including clear, obscure or invisible, and the appearances of the maxillary lateral incisor, regarding congenital absence, incomplete growth, delayed eruption and medial inclination. Differences in the distribution ratio of these visibility and appearances were verified between the patients with and without a cleft palate using the chi-square test. Results: There was a significant difference in the visibility distribution of the upper line between the patients with and without a cleft palate (p<0.05). In most of the patients with a cleft palate, the upper line was not observed. In the unilateral cleft alveolus patients, the medial inclination of the maxillary lateral incisor was more frequently observed in patients with a cleft palate than in patients without a cleft palate. Conclusion: Two differences were identified in panoramic appearances. The first was the disappearance (invisible appearance) of the upper line in patients with a cleft palate, and the second was a change in the medial inclination on the affected side maxillary lateral incisor in unilateral cleft alveolus patients with a cleft palate.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제37권4호
• /
• pp.185-189
• /
• 2007

Purpose: This study was intended to estimate the prevalence of cemento-osseous dysplasia (COD) in the Korean population and to assess the clinical and radiographic characteristics of this condition. Materials and Methods: Panoramic radiographs from 10,646 patients (4,982 males and 5,664 females, age range from 6 to 91 years) were reviewed for evidence of COD. Their demographics, clinical characteristics, and radiographic features were retrospectively assessed. Results: Of 10,646 panoramic radiographs, 33 radiographs (0.31 %) exhibited evidence of COD. The prevalence of COD increased to over 1 % in women over 40-years old. Of these 33 patients, 16 had florid cemento-osseous dysplasia (FCOD) and 17 had focal COD. Due to the multiplicity of FCOD, a total of 63 COD lesions were assessed. These lesions were most common in the mandibular molar area. Most of the COD lesions examined (61.9%) were less than 10 mm and the majority (82.5%) showed radiopacity. Conclusion : COD has a predilection for the mandibular molar area of middle-aged and older women.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제43권3호
• /
• pp.197-200
• /
• 2013

Florid osseous dysplasia (FOD) is an uncommon, benign, cemento-osseous lesion of the jaws. The etiology of FOD is still unknown. It is often asymptomatic and may be identified on routine dental radiographs. The classic radiographic appearance of FOD is amorphous, lobulated, mixed radiolucent/radiopaque masses of cotton-wool appearance with a sclerotic border in the jaws. In our case the lesion was found incidentally on routine periapical radiographs taken for restored teeth and edentulous areas. For further and detailed examination, a panoramic radiograph and cone-beam computed tomograph (CBCT) were taken. The panoramic radiograph and CBCT revealed maxillary bilateral and symmetrical, non-expansile, well-defined, round, radiopaque masses in contact with the root of the maxillary right second molar and left first molar teeth. Our aim in presenting this case report was to highlight the importance of imaging in diagnosis of FOD.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제50권1호
• /
• pp.31-36
• /
• 2020

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of radiotherapy on mandibular bone tissue in head and neck cancer patients through an analysis of pixel intensity and fractal dimension values on digital panoramic radiographs. Materials and Methods: Thirty patients with radiographic records from before and after 3-dimensional (3D) conformational radiotherapy were selected. A single examiner carried out digital analyses of pixel intensity values and fractal dimensions, with the areas of interest unilaterally located in the right angle medullary region of the mandible below the mandibular canal and posterior to the molar region. Results: Statistically significant decreases were observed in the mean pixel intensity (P=0.0368) and fractal dimension (P=0.0495) values after radiotherapy. Conclusion: The results suggest that 3D conformational radiotherapy for head and neck cancer negatively affected the trabecular microarchitecture and mandibular bone mass.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제50권1호
• /
• pp.53-64
• /
• 2020

Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of incidental findings(IFs) on digital dental panoramic radiographs(DPRs) of asymptomatic patients attending a general dental practice. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of 6,252 consecutive digital (photostimulatable phosphor) DPRs of patients who visited a Canadian general dental practice for a complete new patient examination. The IFs were grouped into dental-related anomalies, radiopacities and radiopacities in the jaws, changes in the shape of the condyles, and other findings in the jaws, such as tonsilloliths and mucosal antral pseudocysts. Their prevalence was determined. Results: Thirty-two percent of the DPRs showed at least 1 IF. The highest prevalence was found for dental-related anomalies(29% of all DPRs), of which impacted teeth were the most prevalent finding (24% of all DPRs), followed by idiopathic osteosclerosis(6% of all DPRs). A lower prevalence was noted for tonsilloliths(3%), and the prevalence of root tips, mucosal antral pseudocysts, and anomalies in condylar shape was approximately 1% each. Conclusion: The observed prevalence of 32.1% for IFs of any type underscores the need for a dental practitioner to review the entire DPR when a patient presents for an initial dental examination (or check-up) or for dental hygiene. Only a single IF (a central giant cell granuloma) provoked alarm, as it was initially considered malignant. Similarly, impacted teeth and suspected cysts need careful evaluation upon discovery to determine how they may be optimally managed.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제41권1호
• /
• pp.17-21
• /
• 2011

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to examine the patient- and treatment-related etiologic factors of external root resorption. Materials and Methods : This study consisted of 163 patients who had completed orthodontic treatments and taken the pre- and post-treatment panoramic and lateral cephalometric radiographs. The length of tooth was measured from the tooth apex to the incisal edge or cusp tip on the panoramic radiograph. Overbite and overjet were measured from the pre- and post-treatment lateral cephalometric radiographs. The root resorption of each tooth and the factors of malocclusion were analyzed with an analysis of variance. A paired t test was performed to compare the mean amount of root resorption between male and female, between extraction and non-extraction cases, and between surgery and non-surgery groups. Correlation coefficients were measured to assess the relationship between the amount of root resorption and the age in which the orthodontic treatment started, the degree of changes in overbite and overjet, and the duration of treatment. Results : Maxillary central incisor was the most resorbed tooth, followed by the maxillary lateral incisor, the mandibular central incisor, and the mandibular lateral incisor. The history of tooth extraction was significantly associated with the root resorption. The duration of orthodontic treatment was positively correlated with the amount of root resorption. Conclusion : These findings show that orthodontic treatment should be carefully performed in patients who need the treatment for a long period and with a pre-treatment extraction of teeth.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제48권3호
• /
• pp.227-231
• /
• 2018

In recent years, as interest in maintaining beauty and a youthful appearance has grown, filler procedures such as soft tissue augmentation have become more popular. These fillers are sometimes seen as radiopaque shadows on radiographic images, either due to the fillers themselves or because of secondary reactions; such findings may present a diagnostic challenge to dentists. The present report describes 3 cases of dermal fillers observed in panoramic and cone-beam computed tomographic (CBCT) images. All 3 elderly female patients had filler injected into their cheeks and chin area for cosmetic purposes decades ago. On panoramic images, multiple symmetric radiopacities were observed in the facial area; on CBCT, these calcifications were seen in the subcutaneous tissue in various shapes and with varying density. In conclusion, dentists should be aware of the imaging characteristics of dermal filler, and should be able to differentiate dermal filler from other pathological findings.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제49권3호
• /
• pp.213-218
• /
• 2019

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the mandibular canal and impacted mandibular third molars using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and to compare the CBCT findings with signs on panoramic radiographs(PRs). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study consisted of 200 mandibular third molars from 200 patients who showed a close relationship between the mandibular canal and impacted third molars on PRs and were referred for a CBCT examination of the position of the mandibular canal. The sample consisted of 124 females and 76 males, with ages ranging from 18 to 47 years (mean, $25.75{\pm}6.15$ years). PRs were evaluated for interruption of the mandibular canal wall, darkening of the roots, diversion of the mandibular canal, and narrowing of the mandibular canal. Correlations between the PR and CBCT findings were statistically analyzed. Results: In total, 146 cases(73%) showed an absence of canal cortication between the mandibular canal and impacted third molar on CBCT images. A statistically significant relationship was found between CBCT and PR findings (P<0.05). The absence of canal cortication on CBCT images was most frequently accompanied by the PR sign of diversion of the mandibular canal(96%) and least frequently by interruption of the mandibular canal wall(65%). Conclusion: CBCT examinations are highly recommended when diversion of the mandibular canal is observed on PR images to reduce the risk of mandibular nerve injury, and this sign appears to be more relevant than other PR signs.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
• /
• 제52권2호
• /
• pp.187-195
• /
• 2022

Purpose: This study developed a convolutional neural network (CNN) model to diagnose maxillary sinusitis on panoramic radiographs(PRs) and cone-beam computed tomographic (CBCT) images and evaluated its performance. Materials and Methods: A CNN model, which is an artificial intelligence method, was utilized. The model was trained and tested by applying 5-fold cross-validation to a dataset of 148 healthy and 148 inflamed sinus images. The CNN model was implemented using the PyTorch library of the Python programming language. A receiver operating characteristic curve was plotted, and the area under the curve, accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive values for both imaging techniques were calculated to evaluate the model. Results: The average accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of the model in diagnosing sinusitis from PRs were 75.7%, 75.7%, and 75.7%, respectively. The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of the deep-learning system in diagnosing sinusitis from CBCT images were 99.7%, 100%, and 99.3%, respectively. Conclusion: The diagnostic performance of the CNN for maxillary sinusitis from PRs was moderately high, whereas it was clearly higher with CBCT images. Three-dimensional images are accepted as the "gold standard" for diagnosis; therefore, this was not an unexpected result. Based on these results, deep-learning systems could be used as an effective guide in assisting with diagnoses, especially for less experienced practitioners.

• Anatomy and Cell Biology
• /
• 제56권4호
• /
• pp.474-481
• /
• 2023

The dental characteristics created by acquired dental treatments can be used as age estimators. This pilot study aimed to analyze the correlation between the number of teeth observed for dental characteristics and chronological age and to develop new non-invasive age estimation models. Dental features on panoramic radiographs (420 radiographs of subjects aged 20-89 years) were classified and coded. The correlation between the number of teeth for each selected code (codes V, X, T, F, P, and L) and age was observed, and multiple regression was performed to analyze the relationship between them. Eleven regression models with various combinations of dental sextants were presented. The model with the data from both sides of the posterior teeth on both jaws showed the best performance (root mean square error of 14.78 years and an adjusted R² of 0.461). The model with all teeth was the second-best. Based on these results, we confirmed statistically significant correlations between certain dental features and chronological age. We also observed that some regression models performed sufficiently well to be used as adjunctive methods in forensic practice. These results provide valuable information for the design and performance of future full-scale studies.