The Reliability of Panoramic Radiographs for Different Recipient Sites in Dental Implant Treatment Planning

Abstract

Width, height, density and morphology of alveolar bone must be carefully examined before the surgical intervention for a successful implant treatment. The panoramic radiography (OPG) is the most frequently used method that is employed by large majority of dentists in dental implant planning. The purpose of this study is, to evaluate the consistency of OPG and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) alveolar height measurements at different recipient sites in dental implant planning. Material and Methods: The present study was carried out on the OPG and CBCT images of 206 patients. Using the radiological data of subjects, 752 edentulous implant sites were specified. These areas were classified into 3 groups based on the proximity to certain anatomical landmarks, which were "maxillary sinus (MS)", "mental foramen (MF)" and "nasal floor (NF)". Bone distances between anatomical points and alveolar crest were measured on the OPG and CBCT cross-sectional images. Results: In MS group, the correlation between OPG and CBCT was 0.968 (p<0.001). The correlation between OPG and CBCT was 0.860 in MS-II subgroup (p<0.001). The correlation between OPG and CBCT was 0.950 in MF-I subgroup (p<0.001) and 0.932 in MF-II subgroup (p<0.001). The correlation between OPG and CBCT was 0.965 in NF group (p<0.001). Conclusion: OPG is a safe method in measuring the vertical bone distance on maxillary sinus region for implant planning. However, it might not be safely used on the mental foramen and nasal floor regions.