Implant-assisted removable partial denture using digital guide surgery in partially edentulous mandible: A case report Fixed implant prostheses or removable partial dentures are common treatment for partially dentulous patients. Recently, an implant-assisted removable partial denture (IARPD) has been introduced and is widely used. In the case of removable partial dentures using implant attachment and surveyed fixed prostheses, the consideration about parallelism of insertion path between implants and surveyed fixed prostheses is an important factor for success of IARPDs. In this case, she complained of discomfort while using the mandibular removable partial denture. Thus, an IARPD using implant surveyed fixed prostheses was fabricated.Thereafter, more implants were placed by a digital guide surgery to have the same insertion path as the existing surveyed fixed prostheses. Locator attachments were installed to the left and right premolar implants, and the left molar was able to obtain support of the removable partial denture with healing abutment. The clinical results were satisfactory on the aspect of aesthetic and masticatory function.

Purpose This study aimed to evaluate the utility of the 16-cm axial volume scan technique for calculating the coronary artery calcium score (CACS) using non-enhanced chest CT. Materials and Methods This study prospectively enrolled 20 participants who underwent both, non-enhanced chest CT (16-cm-coverage axial volume scan technique) and calcium-score CT, with the same parameters, differing only in slice thickness (in non-enhanced chest CT = 0.625, 1.25, 2.5 mm; in calcium score CT = 2.5 mm). The CACS was calculated using the conventional Agatston method. The difference between the CACS obtained from the two CT scans was compared, and the degree of agreement for the clinical significance of the CACS was confirmed through sectional analysis. Each calcified lesion was classified by location and size, and a one-to-one comparison of non-contrast-enhanced chest CT and calcium score CT was performed. Results The correlation coefficients of the CACS obtained from the two CT scans for slice thickness of 2.5, 1.25, and 0.625 mm were 0.9850, 0.9688, and 0.9834, respectively. The mean differences between the CACS were −21.4% at 0.625 mm, −39.4% at 1.25 mm, and −76.2% at 2.5 mm slice thicknesses. Sectional analysis revealed that 16 (80%), 16 (80%), and 13 (65%) patients showed agreement for the degree of coronary artery disease at each slice interval, respectively. Inter-reader agreement was high for each slice interval. The 0.625 mm CT showed the highest sensitivity for detecting calcified lesions. Conclusion The values in the non-contrast-enhanced chest CT, using the 16-cm axial volume scan technique, were similar to those obtained using the CACS in the calcium score CT, at 0.625 mm slice thickness without electrocardiogram gating. This can ultimately help predict cardiovascular risk without additional radiation exposure.

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Purpose This study aimed to investigate the optimal threshold value in Hounsfield units (HU) on CT to detect the solid components of pulmonary subsolid nodules using pathologic invasive foci as reference. Materials and Methods Thin-section non-enhanced chest CT scans of 25 patients with pathologically confirmed minimally invasive adenocarcinoma were retrospectively reviewed. On CT images, the solid portion was defined as the area with higher attenuation than various HU thresholds ranging from −600 to −100 HU in 50-HU intervals. The solid portion was measured as the largest diameter on axial images and as the maximum diameter on multiplanar reconstruction images. A linear mixed model was used to evaluate bias in each threshold by using the pathological size of invasive foci as reference. Results At a threshold of −400 HU, the biases were lowest between the largest/maximum diameter of the solid portion of subsolid nodule and the size of invasive foci of the pathological specimen, with 0.388 and −0.0176, respectively. They showed insignificant difference ( p = 0.2682, p = 0.963, respectively) at a threshold of −400 HU. Conclusion For quantitative analysis, −400 HU may be the optimal threshold to define the solid portion of subsolid nodules as a surrogate marker of invasive foci.