RESUMEN
Panoramic radiographs of 3.6 percent of 1,175 newly accepted dental school patients displayed calcifications in the area of the carotid vasculature. The authors interviewed the patients with calcifications to determine whether they exhibited any recognized atherosclerosis, risk factors. One patient had symptoms of atherosclerosis, and a statistically significant correlation was found for obesity among the patients interviewed. The authors concluded that panoramic radiography is useful for identifying some asymptomatic patients with carotid calcifications. These patients should be referred to their physicians promptly for a cerebrovascular work-up as part of an active stroke-prevention strategy.
Asunto(s)
Arteriosclerosis/diagnóstico por imagen , Enfermedades de las Arterias Carótidas/diagnóstico por imagen , Arteria Carótida Común/diagnóstico por imagen , Trastornos Cerebrovasculares/prevención & control , Radiografía Panorámica , Adulto , Anciano , Arteriosclerosis/complicaciones , Enfermedades de las Arterias Carótidas/complicaciones , Trastornos Cerebrovasculares/epidemiología , Trastornos Cerebrovasculares/etiología , Femenino , Humanos , Ataque Isquémico Transitorio/epidemiología , Ataque Isquémico Transitorio/etiología , Ataque Isquémico Transitorio/prevención & control , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Obesidad/complicaciones , RiesgoRESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence and characteristics of zygomatic air cell defect (ZACD) among a general dental clinic population. METHODS: The panoramic radiographs of 2734 dental clinic outpatients were examined for the presence of ZACD. ZACD was defined as a nonexpansile, nondestructive cyst-like radiolucency in the zygomatic process of the temporal bone which appears similar to the mastoid air cells and which does not extend further anteriorly than the zygomaticotemporal suture. RESULTS: ZACD was found in 40 patients (1.5%) with a mean age of 49.6 (s.d. 18.0) years. Twenty cases (50%) each occurred in males and females. Meta-analysis of three large case series comprising 4579 patients revealed a total of 76 cases of ZACD (1.7% prevalence) occurring over an age range of 15-83 years. Thirty-four (44.7%) occurred in males while 42 (55.3%) occurred in females. Bilateral ZACD were found in 17 patients (22.4%). CONCLUSIONS: ZACD is not a rare anatomical variant, and clinicians planning eminectomy or other surgical procedures involving the zygomatic arch are advised to obtain appropriate presurgical imaging studies to avoid the need for creative intra-operative reconstruction.