Sialoliths: A Retrospective Radiological Study

Abstract

Aim: Sialoliths are salivary gland calcifications that mainly affect submandibular and parotid glands. They are detected incidentally on dental panoramic radiographs. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of sialoliths in a Lebanese sample and evaluate the site, gender and age distribution of such findings. Methods: In this retrospective study, 500 digital panoramic radiographs, belonging to 219 males and 281 females aged 18-88 years, were examined to identify sialoliths seen as radiopacities in the parotid, submandibular and sublingual glands regions. Findings were analyzed statistically using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, version 20 (IBM Corp., Armonk, N.Y., USA). Descriptive statistics were presented and Chi-square tests and Spearman correlation coefficient were used to assess relationships between sialoliths and gender, age and site. Statistical significance was set at p=0.05. Results: In our sample of 500 radiographs, sialoliths were identified in 15 (3%). Submandibular sialoliths were the most common (1.8%) followed by parotid sialoliths (1.2%); no sublingual sialoliths were detected. Females were slightly more affected by submandibular sialoliths while males had higher prevalence of parotid sialoliths. No significant age or gender predilections were detected. Conclusion: Identifying sialoliths on panoramic radiographs by dental professionals is essential to avoid possibility of confusion with other soft tissue calcifications very common in the head and neck regions.