Dental age estimation using cone-beam computed tomography: A systematic review and meta-analysis

ABSTRACT

Purpose@#This systematic review aimed to investigate the correlation between chronological age and dental pulp volume in cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). @*Materials and Methods@#The literature was searched in 4 databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar). Within each study, the outcome of interest was the correlation (r) between chronological age and pulp volume. A random-effect meta-analysis was conducted. Subgroup analysis was carried out according to sex and tooth type. @*Results@#Of 5,693 identified studies, 27 fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were selected for meta-analysis. These articles focused on single-rooted teeth (n = 21), multi-rooted teeth (n = 6), maxillary teeth (n = 14), mandibular teeth (n = 6), and maxillary and mandibular teeth (n = 12). The relationship between chronological age and dental pulp volume was examined in the entire population (r = - 0.67), men (r = - 0.75), and women (r = - 0.77) in single- and multi-rooted teeth. The results of the total population analysis showed a relatively strong negative relationship between age and pulp volume. @*Conclusion@#This study suggested that CBCT is a reliable and repeatable tool for dental age estimation. A strong inverse relationship was observed between pulp chamber volume and age. Further studies on the correlation between chronological age and pulp volume of multi-rooted teeth may be beneficial. (Imaging Sci Dent 2023; 53 91-9)