Sella bridging is frequently found in patients with impacted canines. Hence, sella bridging can complement other diagnostic parameters in confirming the status of canine impaction.

The palatal rugae have been used as a reference landmark and identification marker by orthodontists and forensic analysts. However, the reliability of palatal rugae as a forensic marker remains questionable once an individual is subjected to orthodontic treatment. This study aimed at evaluating the changes in the rugae pattern after nonextraction, extraction, and maxillary expansion orthodontic treatment. The lengths and shapes of palatal rugae were evaluated on the pretreatment and post-treatment dental casts of 168 subjects using the Thomas and Kotze classification. Extraction treatment significantly reduced the second and third rugae lengths (p < 0.05), whereas the third rugae length was significantly increased after palatal expansion (p < 0.05). The shape of rugae remained consistent in all the study groups which may be used as a reliable forensic marker in subjects undergoing orthodontic treatment. However, the use of the lengths of palatal rugae in forensic odontology must be made with caution.

Introduction: Narrow airway dimensions due to mandibular deficiency can predispose an individual to severe respiratory distress. Hence, treatment with mandibular advancement devices at an early age might help improving the pharyngeal passage and reduce the risk of respiratory difficulties. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to evaluate the mean changes in the pharyngeal dimensions of children with mandibular deficiency treated with Clark's twin-block appliance (CTB) followed by fixed orthodontic treatment. Methods: Orthodontic records of 42 children with mandibular deficiency were selected. Records comprised three lateral cephalograms taken at the start of CTB treatment, after CTB removal and at the end of fixed appliance treatment, and were compared with 32 controls from the Bolton-Brush study. Friedman test was used to compare pre-treatment, mid-treatment and post-treatment pharyngeal dimensions. Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to compare the airway between pre-treatment and post follow-up controls. Mann-Whitney U test was applied to compare the mean changes in pharyngeal dimensions between treatment group and controls from T2 to T0. Post-hoc Dunnet T3 test was used for multiple comparisons of treatment outcomes after CTB and fixed appliances, taking a p-value of ≤ 0.05 as statistically significant. Results: Superior pharyngeal space (p < 0.001) and upper airway thickness (p = 0.035) were significantly increased after CTB, and the change in superior pharyngeal space remained stable after fixed mechano-therapy. Conclusion: CTB can have a positive effect in improving pharyngeal space and the resultant increase in airway remains stable on an average of two and a half years.

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Endodontic procedures rely heavily on correct radiographs. All stages of endodontic care delivery are affected by the quality of resultant image. Objective of this study was to observe type and frequency of technical errors reported during obtaining intraoral radiographs in the endodontic Department of a teaching hospital. METHODOLOGY: A total of 600 radiographs were included in this retrospective audit. The radiographs were exposed during routine endodontic procedures. A previously published criteria was used to ascertain the technical quality. SPSS version 21 for windows was used for statistical analysis. Frequency and percentage was calculated as well as chi square test was used to determine associations between variables. P < 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: A total of 600 radiographs were included in our study out of which, 185 (30.8%) were found to be technically correct (p=0.183). Radiographs of mandibular molars presented with most errors (n=115, 42.4%, p=0.002). Errors of technique were more prevalent (n=383, 63.8%) followed by errors of processing (n=151, 25.2%, p=0.000). Most common error of technique was positioning error (n=113, 18.8%) (Table no 3). Most common processing error was yellowing of radiographs (n=60, 10%, p=0.003). CONCLUSION: Performance of undergraduate students in obtaining radiographs was poor. Positioning errors were found to be the most common error while radiographs of mandibular molars were most affected.