ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Diagnostic estimation of destruction and formation of bone has the typical limit according to capacity of x-ray generator and image detector. So the aim of this study was to find out how much it can reproduce the shape and the density of bone in the case of using recently developed dental type of cone beam computed tomography, and which image is applied by new detector and mathematic calculation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cone beam computed tomography (PSR 9000N, Asahi Roentgen Ind. Co., Ltd., Japan) and soft x-ray radiography were executed on dry mandible that was already decalcified during 5 hours, 10 hours, 15 hours, 20 hours, and 25 hours. Estimating and comparing of those came to the following results. RESULTS: The change of inferior border of mandible and anterior border of ramus in the region of cortical bone was observed between first 5 and 10 hours of decalcification. The reproduction of shape and density in the region of cortical bone and cancellous bone can be hardly observed at cone beam computed tomography compared with soft x-ray radiography. The difference of decrease of bone density according to hours of decalcification increase wasn't reproduced at cone beam computed tomography compared with soft x-ray radiography. CONCLUSION: CBCT images revealed higher spatial resolution. However, contrast resolution in region of low contrast sensitivity is the inferiority of images' property.