The value of cone beam CT in assessing and managing a dilated odontome of a maxillary canine

Abstract

A case of an unusual anomaly in a maxillary canine is described. A deep enamel invagination resulted in pulpal necrosis, longstanding infection and development of an associated radicular cyst. Diagnostic X-ray imaging was invaluable in demonstrating the complex root anatomy of the dilated odontome. In particular, a cone beam CT scan helped in the formulation of an appropriate treatment plan. Clinical Relevance: Three-dimensional imaging using cone beam CT was valuable in this case to demonstrate the complicated anatomy of a rare dental anomaly, and to help plan treatment.

Dilated odontoma: an unusual case report and literature review

“…Among them, eight were categorized as DO [1,[4][5][6][7][8][9]. Pain or swelling related to a local periapical infection are the main causes of DO discovery, as illustrated in 12 out of the 16 cases [3,4,[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. Indeed, one of the most significant clinical concern of DI is the risk of developing pulpal necrosis.…”

“…In our review, almost 60% of the cases involved women [1,5,7,[10][11][12][13][14][15]. Eleven cases were related to maxillary teeth [3,4,6,8,9,[11][12][13][14][15][16]. Among them, nine were located in the anterior maxillary region [3,4,8,9,[11][12][13]15,16].…”

“…Eleven cases were related to maxillary teeth [3,4,6,8,9,[11][12][13][14][15][16]. Among them, nine were located in the anterior maxillary region [3,4,8,9,[11][12][13]15,16]. Our report presents an extremely rare case of DO localized in the anterior mandibule.…”

“…DI can be detected after a radiographic evaluation with a panoramic X-ray and/or intra-oral radiographs [3,[9][10][11][12][13][14]. However, conventional radiographs are not sufficient to ensure the diagnosis of the mineralized structure observed.…”

“…In these cases, the use of computed tomography (CBCT) can be helpful. Among the 16 reported cases, computed tomography was used in eleven patients [1,[4][5][6][7][8][9]13,15,16]. In this case report, the CBCT allowed to rule out the diagnosis of odontoma and to identify a DO on the tooth 42.…”