Assessing the Accuracy and Reliability of Cone-Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) in Diagnosing Grade II and III Furcation Involvement Compared to Traditional Clinical Examination Methods.

Introduction Chronic periodontal diseases can lead to bone defects and tooth loss, making accurate diagnosis essential for treatment. Various methods are used for diagnosing furcation involvement, with clinical examination and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) being the most effective. CBCT produces reliable images with submillimeter resolution, revealing marginal bone contours and furcation defects. Limited studies show that CBCT is more precise than clinical detection for diagnosing furcation involvement. Therefore, CBCT technology can be considered as an adjunct method for furcation involvement detection. This study tests the accuracy and efficiency of CBCT and clinical examination in detecting furcation involvement. Material and methods The study included 25 patients (68 molars) with generalized periodontitis of stage II to IV, Grade B and C. Inclusion criteria required at least two intrabony defects with probing depth > 6mm in both jaws and criteria of periodontitis in at least 30% of the teeth present. Results The study compared clinical examination and CBCT readings for measuring maxillary and mandibular teeth furcation involvement. The results show significant differences between clinical and CBCT measurements of maxillary teeth furcation involvement, particularly in specific areas and types of furcation involvement. In contrast, there were significant differences between clinical and CBCT readings for only a few measurements of mandibular teeth furcation involvement. Therefore, the study suggests that CBCT imaging may be beneficial for accurate diagnosis and treatment planning in cases of furcation involvement in maxillary teeth. Conclusion CBCT imaging is a reliable adjunct method for detecting furcation involvement in maxillary teeth, while clinical examination alone may not be sufficient. Therefore, the use of CBCT technology should be considered in cases where accurate detection of furcation involvement is necessary for successful treatment outcomes. However, further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm these findings.

Corrigendum to "Retrospective CBCT analysis of maxillary sinus pathology prevalence in the Saudi Arabian population" [Saudi Dent. J. 36(6) (2024) 868-872].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.sdentj.2024.03.016.].

Evaluation of Staining Propensity of Silver Diamine Fluoride With and Without Potassium Iodide in Children (Project Healthy Smiles): Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Silver diamine fluoride (SDF) is becoming more widely recognized as a simple, cost-effective approach to minimize sensitivity and arrest caries. However, SDF results in caries that are stained black. Potassium iodide (KI) treatment with SDF may minimize or lessen the staining. However, the effectiveness of KI on staining has not been investigated. Studies demonstrating that potassium iodide reduces the black staining are still insufficient. This paper presents the study protocol for Healthy Smiles, a randomized controlled trial implemented to compare the staining propensity of SDF and SDF+KI. OBJECTIVE: This study, Healthy Smiles, aims to evaluate the staining propensity of SDF and SDF+KI using a Nix Mini color sensor among children aged 4 to 6 years. Another objective of the study is to evaluate the caries-arresting effect of SDF and SDF+KI in the treatment of carious primary teeth. METHODS: This study is a randomized controlled trial. A total of 60 children with caries that meet the criteria of the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (code 1 or above) will be randomly assigned to treatment groups, where group 1 will be treated with SDF and group 2 will be treated with SDF+KI. Discoloration of treated lesions will be assessed digitally using a Nix Mini color sensor. Participants will be followed up at 1, 3, and 6 months after treatment to digitally record the ∆L and ∆E values using the Nix Mini color sensor. Data will be analyzed using SPSS (version 28; IBM Corp). Independent sample t tests and the Mann-Whitney U test will be used to compare the 2 groups. RESULTS: Enrollment started in October 2023. It is estimated that the enrollment period will be 12 months. Data collection is planned to be completed in 2024. CONCLUSIONS: The presented paper describes Happy Smiles, a project that provides an opportunity to address the aesthetic inconvenience of patients without compromising the effectiveness of the SDF treatment. The trial findings will contribute to the limited evidence base related to discoloration after SDF intervention to improve aesthetic appearances in child oral health. If the results from the trial are promising, it will lead to the development of a model for child oral health and pave the way for further research in child oral health. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/51087.

A Comparative Study of the Assessment of the Accuracy of Willems' and Demirjian's Methods in Dental Age Estimation of the Saudi Arabian Population.

BACKGROUND: The notion that "age is just a number" is sometimes expressed colloquially; however, within the domains of medicine and dentistry, age is not only a numerical value. Rather, it has significant importance in several facets of diagnosis and treatment planning. Demonstrating one's identity is necessary not only in the aftermath of natural calamities or mishaps but also in the context of forensic examination of living persons. Age assessment is a very important tool in forensic odontology and plays a vital role in various fields, including medico-legal matters. The primary focus of the current investigation is to assess the precision and correctness of the data and reliability of Demirjian's method (DM) and Willems' method (WM) for age estimation (AE) among the population of Saudi Arabia. METHODOLOGY: This research was conducted on 300 children from Saudi Arabia, aged seven to 13 years, including both males and females. The assessment of orthopantomography images involved the utilization of both Demirjian's and Willems' methodologies for ascertaining dental age. This determined dental age was then meticulously juxtaposed with the chronological age (CA) of every participant. The data collected underwent a comprehensive statistical analysis, which encompassed the application of the paired t-test. RESULTS: By using both methodologies, it was discovered that the estimated age (EA) exhibited higher values in both men and females compared to the CA. Both Willems' and Demirjian's approaches yielded significantly different results in terms of statistical significance (p = 0.000 and p = 0.000, respectively), as shown by the comparison. CONCLUSION: When comparing Willems' technique to Demirjian's method, it was found that the population under research showed somewhat greater accuracy levels for AE. However, it is important to note that the disparity between these two approaches was relatively small. Consequently, it is imperative to emphasize the necessity for additional research involving a larger sample size to establish the validation of a more region-specific AE method tailored specifically for the Saudi Arabian population.

Prevalence of palatogingival groove affecting maxillary anterior teeth in Saudi subpopulation: A cone-beam computed tomographic study with literature review.

Aim: To investigate the prevalence of palatogingival groove (PGG) affecting maxillary anterior teeth, bilateral occurrence, and distribution among sex in the Saudi subpopulation and to review the literature on the prevalence of PGG. Introduction: Palatogingival groove (PGG) primarily affects maxillary lateral incisors and, when present, may contribute to the pathogenesis of periodontal and endodontic lesions. Materials & methods: A total of 509 CBCT scans of Saudi patients with 2747 maxillary anterior teeth were included in the study. Patients' information, the tooth type, the presence/absence, the unilateral/bilateral distribution, and the type of PGG according to Gu's classification (type I, II, or III) were recorded. Results: The prevalence of the PGG in maxillary anterior teeth was 1.3%, affecting 32 (6.3%) patients. The PGGs were mostly detected in lateral incisors 25 (2.77%). The PGG was found to be unilateral in most patients (96.9%), with higher frequency in males than in females without significance for sex. Conclusion: PGG is not a rare anomaly in the Saudi population and is most frequently found in maxillary lateral incisors. Type I Gu's classification was mostly detected.