A Qualitative Assessment of Bone Mineral Density in Individuals With Hemifacial Microsomia: A Cone-Beam Computed Tomography Study

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study is to utilize cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) to compare the bone mineral density (BMD) on the affected versus nonaffected side, among individuals with hemifacial microsomia (HFM). Methods: This retrospective study included 9 patients with HFM. Pretreatment CBCT volumes were imported into Invivo5 software, which was used to measure BMD through Hounsfield units (HU) in 3 regions of the mandible; inferior to the lower lateral incisors, inferior to the first molar and at the ramus inferior to the sigmoid notch. Each region was measured at the buccal cortical bone, lingual cortical bone, and cancellous bone. The densities on the right and left sides were compared by Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: Overall, the BMD on the affected side tended to show slightly lower values when compared with the nonaffected side. Differences ranged from 14 HU at the lingual cortical plate of the first molar region to 234 HU at the buccal cortical plate of the ramus region. Differences were only statistically significant at the ramus region for the buccal ( P = .002) and lingual ( P < .001) cortical plates and at the lower incisor region at the buccal cortical plate ( P = .016) and cancellous bone ( P = .044). The differences, however, did not seem to be clinically significant. Conclusions: The current study shows that the quality of bone on the affected side may be slightly reduced but did not seem to be clinically significant. This should be accounted for during surgical and orthodontic planning for patients with HFM.

Bone Density of the Condyle of Children with Craniofacial Microsomia and its Correlation with Condylar Resorption After Mandible Distraction Osteogenesis

“…Previous studies have evaluated the morphology of the condyle in patients with CFM 1 ; however, its bone quality has not been well-studied. 2,3 To date, only one study has focused on the bone density (BD) of the mandible in patients with CFM using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) from an orthodontic perspective. 3 Bone mineral density describes bone quality as the mineral content in the specific volume of bone tissue with all its structures, 4 and is widely used to diagnose general bone conditions such as osteoporosis as well as locational lesions such as TMJ disease 5,6,7 Hounsfield units (HU) of multislice computed tomography (MSCT) can be used for BMD measurements.…”

“…3 Bone mineral density describes bone quality as the mineral content in the specific volume of bone tissue with all its structures, 4 and is widely used to diagnose general bone conditions such as osteoporosis as well as locational lesions such as TMJ disease 5,6,7 Hounsfield units (HU) of multislice computed tomography (MSCT) can be used for BMD measurements. 2,8 Having a more profound understanding of bone quality in CFM may deepen our understanding of this disease and assist in its diagnosis.…”

Discrepancy in Mandibular Medullary Cavity on Different Sides: More Hints Towards Understanding Hemifacial Microsomia

“…Their attempts to approach HFM with new measurement techniques have made progress on macroscopically understanding this disease. Tokura et al’s 8 evaluated multiple parameters of mandibular morphology based on HFM patients’ cephalometric radiographs; Elnaghy et al’s 9 found the difference between mandibular ramus bone mineral density on the affected and nonaffected side of HFM patients by cone beam computerized tomography assessments; Chen et al’s 10 investigated the cranial base involvements in HFM patients by 3-dimensional analysis, and Peng et al’s 11 characterized airway changes in HFM adolescents.…”