No abstract

The aim of this study was to demonstrate a possible correlation between radiographic trabecular bone quantified with fractal dimensions analysis and values of primary implant stability deliberated using the Osstell ® monitor (Integration Diagnostics AB, Goteborgsvagen, Sweden) with the density of bone specimens harvested from the implant recipient sites and calculated using the mass and volume of the bone bloc specimens.

The blood supply to both the lateral wall of the maxillary sinus and the overlying membrane originates from the posterosuperior alveolar artery (PSAA) and the infraorbital artery. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the anatomic characteristics of the PSAA in a large number of subjects of the Lebanese population. Images of 696 sinuses were analyzed using cone beam computed tomography (CT). Coronal, axial, and sagittal CT images were evaluated for the presence of an osseous canal in the lateral wall of the sinus, and the prevalence, position, and location of the canal were studied and presented.

Metastatic lesions to the oral cavity are uncommon; they represent between 1 and 3% of all malignant oral neoplasms. In this article, we report a rare case of metastatic urothelial bladder carcinoma in the mandible detected on oral radiographic images and confirmed with multiple imaging modalities. A 67-year-old woman presented to our clinic suffering from pain in the right side of the mandible with a mild swelling. Panoramic radiograph revealed an ill-defined relatively radiolucent lesion in the right mandibular premolar-canine region presenting with permeative changes. Cone-beam computed tomography showed a relatively hypodense lesion with demineralization, interruption of the buccal cortices, and slight thickening and sclerosis of the buccal cortical bone. The patient was referred for further evaluation including additional advanced imaging radiographic techniques (MRI and PET scan) and clinical and histopathological examinations that lead to a final diagnosis of metastatic lesion from an underlying urothelial bladder carcinoma.

Background: Success of dental implants is affected by the quality and density of the alveolar bone. These parameters are essential for implant stability and influence its load-bearing capacity. Their assessment is usually based on preoperative radiographs used as a tool prior to implant procedures. Objective: The aim of the study was to compare the bone density of surgically harvested bone specimens at implant recipient sites in the maxillary and mandibular posterior region using histological analysis to the radiographic bone density using fractal dimension for reliability and determining an image based classification of bone density prior surgery. Methods: Fifty implants were placed in the posterior region of male patients, (twenty five implants in the maxilla and twenty five in the mandible). The edentulous regions were presurgically assessed using Photo Stimulable Phosphor Plate (PSP) intra-oral radiographs and the fractal dimension box counting of region of interest was calculated at the implant recipient site. During surgery, bone core specimens were trephined, and bone densities and minerals parameters were evaluated based on histological analysis using SEM (Scanning Electron Microscopy), and atomic absorption spectrometry. Results: Fractal dimensions (FD) values for the same region of interest (ROI) selected on the radiographs of bone blocks and edentulous sites were different but showed a proportional variation in molar and premolar region of the maxilla and mandible. Bone density results, calculated by the ratio of bone mass (BM) to the bone volume (BV) of the bone core specimen (D=M/V), increased in the mandibular bone blocks, and decreased in the maxilla specimens. Moreover, fractal dimension values of preoperative radiographs at implant recipient sites and bone density of trephined showed a statistically similar distribution. However, no significant difference was shown in the percentage of minerals contents and mass of calcium phosphate of each bone specimen between maxilla and mandible based on scanning electron microscopy analysis. Four types of bone densities were classified according to the distribution of FD values based on preoperative radiographs and on the densities of bone cores calculations. Conclusion: Radiographic estimation of bone quality calculated with fractal dimension could be a useful, non-invasive tool when using preoperative intra-oral radiographs to predict bone density at implant recipient sites with caution and limits concerning the kind of digital radiographs and size of region of interest, especially when these results were based with bone specimens harvested from implant site as an absolute reference.