Outcomes of digital X-ray mini-panel examinations for patients having mental retardation and developmental disability

Abstract

Dental inspections of MR/DD patients are incomplete if radiographs are excluded. Whilst the mini-panel approach could be considered incomplete, it is better than no radiographs at all. 91% of images were excellent to satisfactory in diagnostic quality and a majority of patients' treatments were modified because of the radiographic information.

Are Radiological Examinations Necessary for Mentally Handicapped Dental Patients?

“…They found one or more dental anomaly in 90% of patients and granuloma or cyst in 32% of patients, and reported that 60% of the patients' treatment plans were changed due to radiological findings. Only one patient was discharged from the study due to lack of cooperation [1]. In our study, all patients were uncooperative patients on whom we were unable to obtain PA or OPG.…”

“…Patient cooperation is the main factor in ensuring and maintaining oral health. However, due to lack of cooperation, MHP/ UCPs are at high risk for poor oral and dental health [1]. Aşıcı et al showed that MHPs have more teeth erosions and decay/missing/filling teeth (DMFT) scores when compared with healthy patients [6].…”

“…It may be possible that the levels of the mental disability of these two studies were different. Farman et al concluded that dental examination of MHPs cannot be done properly without radiological assessment, and they also proved the necessity of radiological assessment of MHPs [1]. However, it can be difficult to obtain OPG or PA from MHPs due to lack of cooperation, immobilization, and difficulty in remaining standing for up to 20 secs.…”

“…Dental radiography has become an indispensable part of routine dental examination with the technological development of radiological devices. Dental radiology helps the dental practitioner in assessing or examining the patient for the detection of dental caries or periapical lesions, for imaging prior to dental implant surgery, for defining symptomatic or asymptomatic oral pathology, or for the creation of 3D reconstruction of the maxillofacial region with cone beam dental tomography (CBDT) [1]. Despite the advantages of dental radiology, mentally handicapped patients (MHP) and uncooperative patients (UCP) cannot benefit from this diagnostic tool.…”

Optical Coherence Tomography for Patients with Developmental Disabilities: A Preliminary Study

“…As many factors contribute to the difficulty to obtain high-quality radiographs for PDD, a variety of techniques are needed to support patients in obtaining the necessary diagnostic images. One technique is to obtain fewer images, such as a mini-series of one periapical image in each sextant instead of a full mouth series [ 13 ]. Another technique is to obtain different types of images, such as the use of a panoramic image or oblique lateral radiographs [ 14 ].…”