Comparison of bony changes between panoramic radiograph and cone beam computed tomographic images in patients with temporomandibular joint disorders / 대한치과교정학회지

OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to assess the diagnostic validity of digital panoramic radiographs compared to cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) in patients with temporomandibular joint disorders. METHODS: Panoramic radiograph and CBCT were taken from a total of 212 joints from 106 subjects. The joints were examined by two dentists and divided into the following six groups: normal, flattening, osteophyte formation, erosion, sclerosis, and unclassified. The sensitivity and specificity of each observer and inter-observer reliability were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: The results showed relatively high intra-observer reliability in the diagnosis of both panoramic and CBCT images and the weighted Kappa indices of panoramic and CBCT images were 0.714 and 0.727, respectively. The sensitivities of panoramic images of observer A and B to CBCT images was 82.35% and 84.30%, respectively, while the specificity of observer A and B was 58.06% and 61.54%, respectively. However, guided diagnosis from panoramic and CBCT images were statistically different (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The present study suggests that the panoramic radiograph could be used as a primary diagnostic device to detect bony changes of temporomandibular joints in clinical orthodontics, because panoramic images showed relatively high sensitivity compared to CBCT images. However, CBCT images may be one of the best choices when a more accurate diagnosis is necessary.

Comparison of histologic observation and insertional and removal torque values between titanium grade 2 and 4 microimplants / 대한치과교정학회지

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the light microscopic features and the maximum insertional and removal torque value of microimplants, made from titanium grade 2 or 4, in the tibia of 6 rabbits. First, the maximum torque values of microimplants at implantation were measured. After 2, 8, and 12 weeks of healing time, the microimplant-containing segments of tibia of 2 rabbits were removed and the maximum removal torque of each microimplant were measured. Comparisons of histologic examination and insertional and removal torque values were carried out for the two groups of microimplants. Removal torque values were significantly increased in both groups after 8 and 12 weeks as compared to 2 weeks after implantation. Other values measured did not show any statistically significant differences and there were no histological differences between grade 2 and 4 titanium. Based on these results, this study showed that there were no significant differences between grade 2 and 4 titanium. It seems better to use grade 4 titanium for making microimplants because grade 4 titanium is mechanically harder than grade 2 titanium and has similar retention.