Short term effects of interceptive expansion treatment: a prospective study.

OBJECTIVES: This prospective cohort study investigated the short term effects of interceptive orthodontic treatment with a removable expansion plate, evaluating the changes in occlusion in all its dimensions: transversal, sagittal and vertical. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 226 patients treated with a removable expansion plate (slow maxillary expansion, SME) by orthodontic residents at the Department of Orthodontics, University Hospitals Leuven, Belgium were included. The patients had a mean age of 8.5 years at the start of the treatment. The mean treatment time was 6.9 months. Transversal measurements (intercanine and intermolar width) and occlusal characteristics (molar occlusion, overjet, overbite and functional shift) were collected before (T0) and after active treatment (T1). Statistical analysis was performed using the Wilcoxon signed rank test, Sign test and McNemar test for assessing changes between T0 and T1. Linear models were used to assess the associations between patient factors and the amount of expansion. RESULTS: A significant increase in transversal width at different occlusal landmarks was found. Correction of unilateral, bilateral and frontal crossbites was successful in 99.0%, 95.2% and 93.6% of the cases respectively. Changes in sagittal molar occlusion were significant: 64.9% (right side) and 62.6% (left side) remained stable, 28.4% (right) and 29.3% (left) improved and 6.7% (right) and 8.1% (left) deteriorated. Overbite changes were found to be statistically significant, though clinically irrelevant. Overjet changes were non-significant. CONCLUSIONS: A removable expansion plate is successful in improving the transversal dental dimensions of the maxilla. Statistically significant sagittal effects on molar occlusion were found. Long-term follow-up is needed to evaluate the long-term stability of this treatment.

Dental development in patients with agenesis.

AIM: Recent research concerning tooth development and dental agenesis suggests that specific genes are associated with agenesis, and that these genetic factors could also cause delayed dental development of the remaining teeth. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether dental development of patients with agenesis is delayed, compared to a control group. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Panoramic radiographs of 1145 patients with dental agenesis were collected (452 males, 693 females) aged 6.2 to 24.8 years. The control group included 2032 panoramic radiographs (977 males, 1055 females) aged 6.0 to 24.4 years. A total of 3177 orthopantomograms were staged according to Demirjian. All left permanent teeth present in the mandible (except third molars) were considered. In order to evaluate the difference between patients with and without agenesis, a developmental score (DS) was calculated. The association between the DS and the number of agenetic teeth was evaluated with a Spearman correlation. RESULTS: Based on the DS, patients with agenesis have a delayed development compared to patients in the control group (p < 0.0001). Within the agenesis group, there is a weak relation between the number of agenetic teeth and the DS: the higher the number of teeth with agenesis, the lower the DS (p < 0.0001 and p = 0.06 for females and males, respectively). CONCLUSION: The obtained results can be an important factor for treatment planning in patients with dental agenesis. Moreover, the presence of agenesis needs to be taken into account when using age estimation methods based on permanent tooth development.

Short-term hard and soft tissue changes after mandibular advancement surgery in Class II patients: a retrospective cephalometric study.

AIM: The aim of this study was to describe hard and soft tissue changes after mandibular advancement surgery and to investigate the possible differences between Class II facial patterns. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Lateral cephalograms of 109 patients who underwent combined orthodontic treatment and bilateral sagittal split osteotomy (BSSO) were studied. Radiographs were taken within 6 weeks before surgery (T0) and at least 6 months postoperatively (T1). Patients were classified into 3 groups according to the preoperative mandibular plane angle. Hard- and soft-tissue changes were analysed with an x-y cranial base coordinate system. Measurements were evaluated statistically. RESULTS: Soft and hard tissues of the chin moved forward and downward. The position of the upper lip remained unchanged, while the lower lip moved forward and upward and decreased in thickness. The soft tissue points of the chin follow their corresponding skeletal points almost completely, while the change of the lower lip was only 76 per cent of the movement of the underlying hard tissue. The increase of SNB was more evident in the low-angle group, as well as improvement of the facial convexity. Stomium superius moved more forward in the low- and medium-angle cases. Ratios of hard and soft tissue changes showed no differences for different facial patterns. LIMITATIONS: Limitations derived from the retrospective study design. Only short-term changes could be addressed. The distinction between surgical changes and changes due to skeletal relapse is difficult to assess. Also, the difficulty to reproduce a relaxed lip position during imaging may influence our results. CONCLUSION: Class II characteristics improved after mandibular advancement. Soft tissues of the chin follow their skeletal structures almost in a 1:1 relationship, while movement of the lower lip was less predictable. The facial pattern of Class II patients should be considered in treatment planning.

Dental age estimation in Malay children based on all permanent teeth types.

The applicability of the Willems et al. model was verified on a collected sample of Malay (Malaysian nationality) children. This sample was split in a reference sample to develop a Malay-specific prediction model based on the Willems et al. method and in a test sample to validate this new developed model. Next, the incorporation of third molars into this model was analyzed. Panoramic radiographs (n = 1,403) of Malay children aged between 4 and 14.99 years (n = 702) and subadults aged between 15 and 23.99 years (n = 701) were collected. The left mandibular seven permanent teeth of the children were scored based on the staging technique described by Demirjian and converted to age using the Willems et al. method. Third molar development of all individuals was staged based on the technique described by Gleiser and Hunt modified by Kohler. Differences between dental age and chronological age were calculated and expressed in mean error (ME), mean absolute error (MAE), and root mean square error (RMSE). The Willems et al. model verified on the collected Malay children overestimated chronological age with a ME around 0.45 year. Small differences in ME, MAE, and RMSE between the verified Malay-specific prediction model and the Willems et al. model were observed. An overall neglected decrease in RMSE was detected adding third molar stages to the developed permanent teeth model.

Three-dimensional cephalometric analysis in orthodontics: a systematic review.

CONTEXT: The scientific evidence of 3D cephalometry in orthodontics has not been well established. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the evidence for the diagnostic efficacy of 3D cephalometry in orthdontics, focusing on measurement accuracy and reproducibility of landmark identification. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane library (from beginning to March 13, 2012) were searched. Search terms included: cone-beam computed tomography; tomography, spiral computed; imaging, three-dimensional; orthodontics. STUDY SELECTION: Two reviewers read the retrieved articles and selected relevant publications based on pre-established inclusion criteria. The selected publications had to elucidate the hierarchical model of the efficacy of diagnostic imaging systems by Fryback and Thornbury. DATA EXTRACTION: The data was then extracted according to two protocols, which were based on the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS) tool. Next, levels of evidence were categorized into 3 groups: low, moderate and high evidence. DATA SYNTHESIS: 571 publications were found by database search strategies and 50 additional studies by hand search. A total of 35 publications were included in this review. CONCLUSIONS: Limited evidence for the diagnostic efficacy of 3D cephalometry was found. Only 6 studies met the criteria for a moderate level of evidence. Accordingly, this systematic review reveals that there is still need for methodologically standardized studies on 3D cephalometric analysis.

An in vitro comparison of subjective image quality of panoramic views acquired via 2D or 3D imaging.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study is to compare subjective image quality and diagnostic validity of cone-beam CT (CBCT) panoramic reformatting with digital panoramic radiographs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four dry human skulls and two formalin-fixed human heads were scanned using nine different CBCTs, one multi-slice CT (MSCT) and one standard digital panoramic device. Panoramic views were generated from CBCTs in four slice thicknesses. Seven observers scored image quality and visibility of 14 anatomical structures. Four observers repeated the observation after 4 weeks. RESULTS: Digital panoramic radiographs showed significantly better visualization of anatomical structures except for the condyle. Statistical analysis of image quality showed that the 3D imaging modalities (CBCTs and MSCT) were 7.3 times more likely to receive poor scores than the 2D modality. Yet, image quality from NewTom VGi® and 3D Accuitomo 170® was almost equivalent to that of digital panoramic radiographs with respective odds ratio estimates of 1.2 and 1.6 at 95% Wald confidence limits. A substantial overall agreement amongst observers was found. Intra-observer agreement was moderate to substantial. CONCLUSIONS: While 2D-panoramic images are significantly better for subjective diagnosis, 2/3 of the 3D-reformatted panoramic images are moderate or good for diagnostic purposes. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Panoramic reformattings from particular CBCTs are comparable to digital panoramic images concerning the overall image quality and visualization of anatomical structures. This clinically implies that a 3D-derived panoramic view can be generated for diagnosis with a recommended 20-mm slice thickness, if CBCT data is a priori available for other purposes.

Human age estimation combining third molar and skeletal development.

The wide prediction intervals obtained with age estimation methods based on third molar development could be reduced by combining these dental observations with age-related skeletal information. Therefore, on cephalometric radiographs, the most accurate age-estimating skeletal variable and related registration method were searched and added to a regression model, with age as response and third molar stages as explanatory variable. In a pilot set up on a dataset of 496 (283 M; 213 F) cephalometric radiographs, the techniques of Baccetti et al. (2005) (BA), Seedat et al. (2005) (SE), Caldas et al. (2007) and Rai et al. (2008) (RA) were verified. In the main study, data from 460 (208 F, 224 M) individuals in an age range between 3 and 26 years, for which at the same day an orthopantogram and a cephalogram were taken, were collected. On the orthopantomograms, the left third molar development was registered using the scoring system described by Gleiser and Hunt (1955) and modified by Köhler (1994) (GH). On the cephalograms, cervical vertebrae development was registered according to the BA and SE techniques. A regression model, with age as response and the GH scores as explanatory variable, was fitted to the data. Next, information of BA, SE and BA + SE was, respectively, added to this model. From all obtained models, the determination coefficients and the root mean squared errors were calculated. Inclusion of information from cephalograms based on the BA, as well as the SE, technique improved the amount of explained variance in age acquired from panoramic radiographs using the GH technique with 48%. Inclusion of cephalometric BA + SE information marginally improved the previous result (+1%). The RMSE decreased with 1.93, 1.85 and 2.03 years by adding, respectively, BA, SE and BA + SE information to the GH model. The SE technique allows clinically the fastest and easiest registration of the degree of development of the cervical vertebrae. Therefore, the choice of technique to classify cervical vertebrae development in addition to third molar development is preferably the SE technique.

Human dental age estimation combining third molar(s) development and tooth morphological age predictors.

In the subadult age group, third molar development, as well as age-related morphological tooth information can be observed on panoramic radiographs. The aim of present study was to combine, in subadults, panoramic radiographic data based on developmental stages of third molar(s) and morphological measurements from permanent teeth, in order to evaluate its added age-predicting performances. In the age range between 15 and 23 years, 25 gender-specific radiographs were collected within each age category of 1 year. Third molar development was classified and registered according the 10-point staging and scoring technique proposed by Gleiser and Hunt (1955), modified by Köhler (1994). The Kvaal (1995) measuring technique was applied on the indicated teeth from the individuals' left side. Linear regression models with age as response and third molar-scored stages as explanatory variables were developed, and morphological measurements from permanent teeth were added. From the models, determination coefficients (R (2)) and root-mean-square errors (RMSE) were calculated. Maximal-added age information was reported as a 6 % R² increase and a 0.10-year decrease of RMSE. Forensic dental age estimations on panoramic radiographic data in the subadult group (15-23 year) should only be based on third molar development.

Evaluation of long-term hard tissue relapse following surgical-orthodontic treatment in skeletal class II patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

This systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the long-term hard tissue stability and relapse factors following surgical-orthodontic treatment in skeletal class II patients. A literature search was conducted using Embase, Cochrane Central, Web of Science, and PubMed, yielding 3184 articles published up to January 2019. Risk of bias was assessed following the Cochrane handbook. Ten articles met the inclusion criteria. A total of 1079 patients were followed up for 5-13 years. The qualitative findings showed a variety of extrinsic and intrinsic factors affecting long-term stability. Meta-analysis for the amount and direction of cephalometric landmark displacement in the vertical and sagittal planes showed significant angular increases of ANB and backward relapse of SNB, however within the clinically acceptable range of 4°. In relation to linear measurements, the mean differences in all landmarks were within the clinically acceptable range of 2mm except for gonion. In conclusion, this systematic review showed multiple intrinsic and extrinsic factors responsible for relapse. However, the outcomes of the meta-analysis are limited due to the heterogeneity of data, small number of studies, and inconsistent methods of evaluation. Further high-quality studies utilising standardised three-dimensional methodologies are required to improve the level of evidence.

Human dental age estimation using third molar developmental stages: does a Bayesian approach outperform regression models to discriminate between juveniles and adults?

Dental age estimation methods based on the radiologically detected third molar developmental stages are implemented in forensic age assessments to discriminate between juveniles and adults considering the judgment of young unaccompanied asylum seekers. Accurate and unbiased age estimates combined with appropriate quantified uncertainties are the required properties for accurate forensic reporting. In this study, a subset of 910 individuals uniformly distributed in age between 16 and 22 years was selected from an existing dataset collected by Gunst et al. containing 2,513 panoramic radiographs with known third molar developmental stages of Belgian Caucasian men and women. This subset was randomly split in a training set to develop a classical regression analysis and a Bayesian model for the multivariate distribution of the third molar developmental stages conditional on age and in a test set to assess the performance of both models. The aim of this study was to verify if the Bayesian approach differentiates the age of maturity more precisely and removes the bias, which disadvantages the systematically overestimated young individuals. The Bayesian model offers the discrimination of subjects being older than 18 years more appropriate and produces more meaningful prediction intervals but does not strongly outperform the classical approaches.

Accuracy and surgical feasibility of a CBCT-based stereolithographic surgical guide aiding autotransplantation of teeth: in vitro validation.

The aims of this study were to determine the accuracy of a 3D computer model and stereolithographic (STL) replica when compared to the real tooth and to develop a cone beam computed tomography (CBCT)-based planning technique including surgical guide fabrication. A STL surgical guide and a tooth replica were fabricated using SimPlant Pro 12.1. To validate this process, tooth segmentation and replica design were prepared for comparison to an optical scan of the corresponding tooth. For surgical intervention, a dry dentate mandible was scanned using a Scanora CBCT and the donor tooth was segmented. The donor tooth was repositioned, and two guides were designed. These tooth replica and guides were used in socket preparation of the dry mandible. The 3D computer model of the segmented teeth and related STL models showed satisfactory results with an acceptable accuracy. The surfaces were within 0·25mm distance, but in some areas up to 2·5mm deviation were seen. The results showed that 79% of the points was between 0·25 and -0·25mm, 3% was overestimated (>0·25mm) and 18% was underestimated (<-0·25mm). The computer-based repositioning of the donor tooth and construction of tooth replica and guide allowed socket preparation before donor tooth extraction and optimization of the STL procedure for in vivo planning of CBCT-based autotransplantation.

Cephalometric traits in children and adolescents with and without atypical swallowing: A retrospective study.

AIM: It has been suggested that atypical swallowing (AS) may negatively influence the skeletal and alveolar development, but its specific effects are still unclear. The aim of this work is to compare the cephalometric characteristics of children and adolescents with and without AS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Study design: Case-control retrospective cross-sectional study. One hundred patients with (AS group) and 100 patients without AS (control group, C) were retrospectively selected. Their cephalometric data before orthodontic treatment were compared using a 3-way ANOVA variance test to detect any differences between groups considering: the type of swallowing (AS vs C); whether or not the second dentition was completed (SDC vs SDNC); and the gender (males-M and females-F). In addition, a Student-t test for unpaired data was carried out to detect differences between M and F within the AS and C groups. RESULTS: When compared to the controls, AS patients showed a significantly decreased SNB angle (p<.01), increased ANB and SN^Go. Me angles (p<.0001), increased overjet and lower facial height (p<.01), decreased overbite (p<.0001), and increased proclination of the upper incisors. AS-SDC patients also showed significantly increased alveolar length. Within the AS and C groups, skeletal and alveolar measurements were larger in males, with higher significance in the C group, suggesting a different trend of growth in AS patients. CONCLUSION: AS seems to affect the skeletal growth causing mandibular clockwise rotation, skeletal Class II, open bite and incisor proclination. To compensate for these effects, an increase in alveolar growth together with molar eruption seems to be induced.

Evaluation of long-term hard tissue remodelling after skeletal class III orthognathic surgery: a systematic review.

This systematic review was performed to investigate the long-term hard tissue stability in orthognathic surgery patients with skeletal class III malocclusion. A literature search was conducted using the Embase, Cochrane Central, Web of Science, and PubMed databases, yielding 3690 articles published up to June 2018. Nine articles met the inclusion criteria; these reported skeletal changes in 886 patients with between 5 and 12.7 years of follow-up. Risk of bias was assessed according to the Cochrane Handbook. Results showed variations in stability based on age, facial pattern, surgical procedure, and fixation type. Young patients showed a greater increase in mandibular length and higher A-point stability after bimaxillary surgery than older patients. Dolichofacial patients showed skeletal relapse with a facial clockwise rotation, whereas counterclockwise rotation was observed in brachyfacial patients. Single mandibular setback surgery was linked to stability loss with decreased mandibular ramus and gonion angle; meanwhile, genioplasty fell into the highly stable surgery category. The hyoid bone relapsed significantly postero-inferiorly, which correlated with suprahyoid muscle changes but little to no mandibular position changes. Fixation with monocortical miniplates showed higher patient satisfaction and better stability compared to bicortical screw fixation. These conclusions should be regarded with caution because of the lack of current evidence from three-dimensional imaging.

Root resorption of the maxillary lateral incisor caused by impacted canine: a literature review.

Root resorption of maxillary lateral incisors caused by erupting canines is well known and a relatively common phenomenon. However, much debate and conflicting evidence exists with regard to the actual resorption trigger and potential etiological factors involved. Consequently, there are no obvious clinical clues concerning prevention and diagnosis as well as subsequent treatment decisions. The introduction of cone beam computer tomography has recently allowed drawing a new and much more documented light on the diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. However, no investigations have determined that this new information may result in another and better diagnostic approach and an improved treatment outcome. Therefore, the present review will attempt to summarize the existing evidence on two- and three-dimensional images and try to link the radiological observations to any further preventive, diagnostic, and/or therapeutic measures. Detection thresholds, accuracy, and reliability of impacted canine localization and neighboring root resorption risks will also be considered. This review demonstrates how adding a third-dimension to the radiographic information may notably alter the prevalence of root resorptions and descriptions of this prevalence. In any case, further investigation is needed to determine resorption detection thresholds in various two-dimensional and three-dimensional imaging techniques, as well as to determine therapeutic thresholds and criteria for strategic tooth extraction based on radiographic manifest and not manageable resorption lesions.

The influence of sex, age and body mass index on facial soft tissue depths.

Facial soft tissue depth charts are used in the majority of forensic facial approximation methods. In the past, based on the multitude of available soft tissue depth charts, a number of hypotheses were advanced concerning the impact of sex, BMI and age on the depth of tissues. In this study, for the first time, a multivariate analysis was performed on a large-scale study on Caucasian adults to determine the "real" impact of these attributes. The calculation of a robust multiple linear regression of soft tissue thickness versus BMI, age and sex for each landmark separately, allowed us to study the impact from a statistical as well as practical point of view. Former findings were re-evaluated. Additionally, the results confirm the dominant role of BMI in the alterations of facial soft tissue thickness. However, excluding age and sex from the equation should be considered with care and can certainly not be applied to all landmarks. Finally, the regression equation allows increase in the specificity of tissue depths used in real cases by offering practitioners the possibility of calculating individual tissue depths.

Use of CBCT Guidance for Tooth Autotransplantation in Children.

Tooth autotransplantation (TAT) offers a viable biological approach to tooth replacement in children and adolescents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcome of the cone-beam computed tomographic (CBCT)-guided TAT compared to the conventional TAT protocol and to assess the 3-dimensional (3D) patterns of healing after CBCT-guided TAT (secondary aim). This study included 100 autotransplanted teeth in 88 patients. Each experimental group consisted of 50 transplants in 44 patients (31 males and 19 females). The mean (SD) age at the time of surgery was 10.7 (1.1) y for the CBCT-guided group. This was 10.6 (1.3) y for the conventional group. The mean (SD) follow-up period was 4.5 (3.1) y (range, 1.1 to 10.4 y). Overall survival rate for the CBCT-guided TAT was 92% with a success rate of 86% compared to an 84% survival rate and a 78% success rate for the conventional group ( P > 0.005). The following measurements were extracted from the 3D analysis: root hard tissue volume (RV), root length (RL), apical foramen area (AFA), and mean and maximum dentin wall thickness (DWT). Overall, the mean (SD) percentage of tissue change was as follows: RV gain by 65.8% (34.6%), RL gain by 37.3% (31.5%), AFA reduction by 91.1% (14.9%), mean DWT increase by 107.9% (67.7%), and maximum DWT increase by 26.5% (40.1%). Principal component analysis (PCA) identified the mean DWT, RV, and maximum DWT as the parameters best describing the tissue change after TAT. Cluster analysis applied to the variables chosen by the PCA classified the CBCT group into 4 distinct clusters (C1 = 37.2%, C2 = 17.1%, C3 = 28.6%, C4 = 17.1%), revealing different patterns of tissue healing after TAT. The CBCT-guided approach increased the predictability of the treatment. The 3D analysis provided insights into the patterns of healing. CBCT-guided TAT could be adopted as an alternative for the conventional approach. (Clinical trial center and ethical board University Hospitals, KU Leuven: S55287; ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02464202).

Expression of biological mediators during orthodontic tooth movement: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present systematic review was to offer a timeline of the events taking place during orthodontic tooth movement(OTM). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Electronic databases PubMed, Web of Science and EMBASE were searched up to November 2017. All studies describing the expression of signaling proteins in the periodontal ligament(PDL) of teeth subjected to OTM or describing the expression of signaling proteins in human cells of the periodontal structures subjected to static mechanical loading were considered eligible for inclusion for respectively the in-vivo or the in-vitro part. Risk of bias assessment was conducted according to the validated SYRCLE's RoB tool for animal studies and guideline for assessing quality of in-vitro studies for in-vitro studies. RESULTS: We retrieved 7583 articles in the initial electronic search, from which 79 and 51 were finally analyzed. From the 139 protein investigated, only the inflammatory proteins interleukin(IL)-1ß, cyclooxygenase(COX)-2 and prostaglandin(PG)-E2, osteoblast markers osteocalcin and runt-related transcription factor(RUNX)2, receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand(RANKL) and osteoprotegerin(OPG) and extracellular signal-regulated kinases(ERK)1/2 are investigated in 10 or more studies. CONCLUSION: The investigated proteins were presented in a theoretical model of OTM. We can conclude that the cell activation and differentiation and recruitment of osteoclasts is mediated by osteocytes, osteoblasts and PDL cells, but that the osteogenic differentiation is only seen in stem cell present in the PDL. In addition, the recently discovered Ephrin/Ephs seem to play an role parallel with the thoroughly investigated RANKL/OPG system in mediating bone resorption during OTM.

A systematic review of odontological sex estimation methods.

BACKGROUND: In human identification sex estimation plays an important role in the search for ante-mortem data. AIM: To systematically review studies describing and testing/validating methods of odontological sex estimation. The set research question was: What odontological sex estimation method is the most accurate? MATERIALS AND METHODS: An electronic search until November 29th 2016 was performed in 5 databases: MEDLINE/PubMed, Cochrane, SciELO, LILACS and Grey literature. The PRISMA guidelines were used. Studies were assessed and included based on the reported data. In particular data criteria were set regarding the considered population, sample size, age range, sex estimation method, type of statistical analysis and study outcome. The extracted data enabled to classify the included studies. Meta-analysis was used to compare the study outcomes per obtained study group. RESULTS: The established search string detected 4720 studies. 103 were considered eligible after review of title, abstract and full-text. The odontological sex estimation methods were classified based on dental metric and non-metric measurements (n=65), cephalometric analysis (n=13), frontal and maxillary sinuses (n=5), cheiloscopy (n=4), palatal features (n=3) and biochemical analysis of teeth (n=13). Teeth measurements for sex estimation were mainly performed on casts (n=34), followed by skeletal remains (n=13), medical imaging (n=5), intraoral measurements/ photography (n=4), and cascades of the above (n=4). CONCLUSION: The variety of published odontological sex estimation methods highlights the importance of sex estimation in human identification. Biochemical analysis of teeth proved to be the most accurate method, but in forensic practice, a need to select the most appropriate evidence based odontological sex estimation method exists.

Uniqueness of the anterior dentition three-dimensionally assessed for forensic bitemark analysis.

The uniqueness of the human dentition (UHD) is an important concept in the comparative process in bitemark analysis. During this analysis, the incisal edges of the suspects' teeth are matched with the bitemarks collected from the victim's body or crime scenes. Despite playing an essential part to exclude suspects, the UHD contained in the involved incisal tooth edges remains an assumption on bitemark level. The present study was aimed, first, to investigate three-dimensionally (3D) the UHD within different quantities of dental material from the incisal edges; second, to test these outcomes in a bidimensional (2D) simulation. Four-hundred forty-five dental casts were collected to compose 4 study groups: I - randomly-selected subjects, II - orthodontically treated subjects, III - twins and IV - orthodontically treated twins. Additionally, 20 dental casts were included to create threshold groups on subjects from whom the dental impressions were taken at 2 different moments (Group V). All the dental casts were digitalized with an automated motion device (XCAD 3D® (XCADCAM Technology®, São Paulo, SP, Brazil). The digital cast files (DCF) were integrated in Geomagic Studio® (3D Systems®, Rock Hill, SC, USA) software package (GS) for cropping, automated superimposition and pair-wise comparisons. All the DCF were cropped remaining 3 mm (part 1), 2 mm (part 2) and 1 mm (part 3) from the incisal edges of the anterior teeth. For a 2D validation, slices of 1 mm, not including incisal edges (part 4), were also cropped. These procedures were repeated in Group V, creating specific thresholds for each of the study parts. The 4 study groups were compared with its respective threshold using ANOVA test with statistical significance of 5%. Groups I, II and III did not differ from the corresponding threshold (Group V) in all study parts (p > 0.05). Scientific evidence to support the UHD was not observed in the current study. Bitemark analysis should not be disregarded but considered carefully when the suspects present similar dental alignment and morphology, such as in orthodontically treated subjects and twins, respectively.

Three-dimensional analysis of the uniqueness of the anterior dentition in orthodontically treated patients and twins.

Dental uniqueness can be proven if no perfect match in pair-wise morphological comparisons of human dentitions is detected. Establishing these comparisons in a worldwide random population is practically unfeasible due to the need for a large and representative sample size. Sample stratification is an option to reduce sample size. The present study investigated the uniqueness of the human dentition in randomly selected subjects (Group 1), orthodontically treated patients (Group 2), twins (Group 3), and orthodontically treated twins (Group 4) in comparison with a threshold control sample of identical dentitions (Group 5). The samples consisted of digital cast files (DCF) obtained through extraoral 3D scanning. A total of 2.013 pair-wise morphological comparisons were performed (Group 1 n=110, Group 2 n=1.711, Group 3 n=172, Group 4 n=10, Group 5 n=10) with Geomagic Studio® (3D Systems®, Rock Hill, SC, USA) software package. Comparisons within groups were performed quantifying the morphological differences between DCF in Euclidean distances. Comparisons between groups were established applying One-way ANOVA. To ensure fair comparisons a post-hoc Power Analysis was performed. ROC analysis was applied to distinguish unique from non-unique dentures. Identical DCF were not detected within the experimental groups (from 1 to 4). The most similar DCF had Euclidian distance of 5.19mm in Group 1, 2.06mm in Group 2, 2.03mm in Group 3, and 1.88mm in Group 4. Groups 2 and 3 were statistically different from Group 5 (p<0.05). Statistically significant difference between Group 4 and 5 revealed to be possible including more pair-wise comparisons in both groups. The ROC analysis revealed sensitivity rate of 80% and specificity between 66.7% and 81.6%. Evidence to sustain the uniqueness of the human dentition in random and stratified populations was observed in the present study. Further studies testing the influence of the quantity of tooth material on morphological difference between dentitions and its impact on uniqueness remain necessary.