Comparison of periapical radiography, panoramic radiography, and CBCT in the evaluation of trabecular bone structure using fractal analysis.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to compare imaging techniques to evaluate trabecular bone structure using Fractal Analysis (FA). METHODS: Fifteen sheep hemimandibles were used for this study. Digital images were obtained using periapical radiography, panoramic radiography, and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). CBCT imaging was performed in standard (STD) and high-resolution (HR) modes. FA was conducted using ImageJ 1.3 software with the box-counting method on the images. The fractal dimension (FD) values were analyzed by the statistical software Jamovi 1.6.23. Statistical significance was accepted as p < 0.05. RESULTS: The highest mean FD value was the FD on digital periapical radiographs (PaFD) (1.28 ± 0.04), and the lowest mean FD value was the FD on standard resolution cone-beam computed tomography images (STD-CBCTFD) (1.12 ± 0.10). Although there was no statistically significant difference between the PaFD and the FD on digital panoramic radiographs (PanFD) (p = 0.485), the PaFD was found to be significantly higher than STD-CBCTFD (p < 0.001), and the FD on high-resolution cone-beam computed tomography images (HR-CBCTFD) (p = 0.007). The PanFD was found to be significantly higher than the STD-CBCTFD (p = 0.004). CONCLUSION: According to our results, in the evaluation of trabecular bone structure using FA, periapical radiographs and panoramic radiographs have similar image quality for assessment of the FD. On the other hand, CBCT results did not correlate with results from any of the other techniques in this study.

Mercury Concentration in Saliva and the Impact of Chewing: An Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry Study.

Mercury, which is found in dental amalgams, is considered to be the most toxic non-radioactive element. However, the health policies of different countries have not reached a consensus on the use and safety of amalgam. This study aims to investigate the effect of amalgam restorations on mercury concentration in saliva, as well as the effect of restoration number, surface number, and chewing on this concentration. A total of 86 participants were included in this study (an equal number for the study and control groups). The number of amalgam restorations and their surfaces were recorded. While both unstimulated and stimulated saliva were collected from the study group, only unstimulated saliva was collected from the control group. The effect of chewing on mercury concentration was examined in the study group with unstimulated and stimulated saliva specimens using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry device. Mercury concentration in the unstimulated saliva was found to be higher in the study group compared to the control group (p= 0.000). As the number of amalgam restorations and the number of amalgam restoration surfaces increased, the mercury concentration in the saliva increased (p= 0.015 and p= 0.021, respectively). There was no statistically significant difference between mercury levels in the unstimulated saliva and the stimulated saliva (p=0.316). Chewing presented an insignificant difference in mercury concentration. Given this surprising result, the effect of chewing on mercury concentrations should be explored more extensively in future research.

Effects of functional orthopedic treatment on mandibular trabecular bone in class II patients using fractal analysis.

PURPOSE: The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the effects of functional orthopedic treatment on mandibular bone structure using fractal dimension (FD) analysis of panoramic radiographs. METHODS: The study material consisted of the pre- and posttreatment digital panoramic radiographs of 80 patients (mean age 10.1 ±â€¯2.01 years; 45 girls, 35 boys) with class II malocclusion who were treated with the monoblock or twin block appliances. The following regions of interest (ROI) were selected: ROI1, condylar process; ROI2, angulus mandibulae; ROI3, corpus mandibulae; and ROI4, mental foramen. Pre- and posttreatment FD values were compared for each ROI. RESULTS: FD values of the mandibular condyle did not change with the functional orthodontic treatment. FD values of the mandibular corpus region had the highest pretreatment values and significantly decreased with treatment (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Functional orthopedic treatment altered the trabeculation of the mandibular bone, but it is speculated that the changes in the occlusal forces seemed to be of primary significance for this effect.

Use of Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines Algorithm to Predict Body Weight from Body Measurements of Anatolian buffaloes in Türkiye.

Anatolian buffalo is an important breed reared for meat and milk in various regions of Türkiye. The present study was performed to estimate body weight (BW) from several body measurements, such as tail length (TL), shoulder height (SH), withers height (WH), body length (BL), chest circumference (CC), shank diameter (SD) and birth weight (BiW). The data set was taken from Mus Province of Türkiye. In this respect, 171 Anatolian buffaloes were used. To estimate the BW, different proportions of the training and test sets were used with the MARS algorithm. The optimal MARS was determined at a proportion of 70-30%. The MARS model displays the heaviest BW that can be produced by Anatolian buffalo according to tail length, body length, chest circumference and shoulder height. In conclusion, it could be suggested that the MARS algorithm may allow animal breeders to obtain an elite population and to determine the body measurements affecting BW as indirect selection criteria for describing the breed description of Anatolian buffalo and aiding sustainable meat production and rural development in Türkiye.

Xanthogranulomatous appendicitis causing an endometrial abscess: radiological findings.

Xanthogranulomatous inflammation (XGI) is a rare chronic inflammatory condition most commonly involving the kidneys and gallbladder. The condition is histopathologically characterized by the presence of foamy histiocytes, lymphocytes, and plasma cells. A few reports describing appendicitis caused by XGI have appeared in the English-language literature. However, no study has yet focused on the imaging features of xanthogranulomatous appendicitis (XGA). We present a pathologically confirmed case of XGA with an endometrial abscess; the patient underwent ultrasonography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of XGA with uterine and right adnexal involvement presenting as a complicated pelvic abscess on radiological imaging.