Influence of moisture content of frozen and embalmed human cadavers for identification of dentinal microcracks using micro-computed tomography

Micro-CT evaluation of frozen and embalmed human cadavers on the effect of root canal preparation on microcrack formation in old dentin

“…It has been shown, that microcracks are blacked out due to excessive moisture condition of dentin, leading to false-negative results [ 18 ]. Moreover, the limited visibility of dentinal microcracks in overly wet dentoalveolar bone-blocks was recently demonstrated [ 29 ]. Therefore, in the present study, specimens were stored under dry conditions for 24 hours before scanning procedures, enabling the detection of dentinal microcracks.…”

“…However, the ideal moisture condition of the specimens seems to be a balancing act between the visibility of microcracks and the formation of new defects induced by dehydration [ 38 , 47 ]. To identify the optimum moisture conditions of specimens in order to detect dentinal microcracks is a major challenge when using micro-CT imaging [ 18 , 29 , 47 ]. Furthermore, the identification of microcracks requires high resolution scans resulting in very long scanning duration up to several hours, in which the moisture content of the sample needs to be kept constant [ 29 ].…”

“…X-rays were filtered with a 0.11-mm-thick copper filter. Recent studies have shown the moisture content to influence the visibility of dentinal microcracks in extracted teeth, as well as in dentoalveolar bone-blocks on micro-CT images [ 18 , 29 ]. Therefore, all specimens were kept under dry conditions (room temperature, 21°C; 27% humidity) for 24 hours before scanning to allow the detection of dentinal microcracks [ 29 ].…”

“…Recent studies have shown the moisture content to influence the visibility of dentinal microcracks in extracted teeth, as well as in dentoalveolar bone-blocks on micro-CT images [ 18 , 29 ]. Therefore, all specimens were kept under dry conditions (room temperature, 21°C; 27% humidity) for 24 hours before scanning to allow the detection of dentinal microcracks [ 29 ]. For the scan the specimens were placed on dry foam and the sample holder was tightly closed with a plastic foil to maintain a constant humidity for the entire scan duration of 4.5 hours.…”

“…A recent study, however, demonstrated the visibility of dentinal microcracks in frozen and embalmed dentoalveolar bone-blocks not to be affected by the preservation method [ 29 ].…”