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Objectives: To investigate the accuracy and reliability of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) measurements of buccal alveolar bone height (BBH) and thickness (BBT) using custom acquisition settings., Settings and Sample Population: School of Dentistry, Oregon Health & Science University. Twelve embalmed cadavers., Materials and Methods: Cadaver heads were imaged by CBCT (i-CAT® 17-19, Imaging Sciences International, Hatfield, PA) using a 'long scan' (LS) setting with 619 projection images, 360° revolution, 26.9 s duration, and 0.2 mm voxel size, and using a 'short scan' (SS) setting with 169 projection images, 180° rotation, 4.8 s duration, and 0.3 mm voxel size. BBH and BBT were measured with 65 teeth, indirectly from CBCT images and directly through dissection. Comparisons were assessed using paired t-tests (p≤0.05). Level of agreement was assessed by concordance correlation coefficients, Pearson's correlation coefficients, and Bland-Altman plots., Results: Mean differences in measurements compared to direct measurements were as follows, LS 0.17±0.12 (BBH) and 0.10±0.07 mm (BBT), and SS 0.41±0.32 (BBH) and 0.12±0.11 mm (BBT). No statistical differences were found with any of BBH or BBT measurements. Correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman plots showed agreement was high between direct and indirect measurement methods, although agreement was stronger for measurements of BBH than BBT., Conclusions: Compared to the LS, the similarity in results with the reduced scan times and hence reduced effective radiation dose, favors use of shorter scans, unless other purposes for higher resolution imaging can be defined., (© 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Introduction: Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) imaging has broadened opportunities for examining morphologic aspects of the craniofacial complex, including alveolar bone, but limitations of the technology have yet to be defined. Through the use of comparisons with direct measurements, the purpose of this study was to investigate the accuracy and reliability of buccal alveolar bone height and thickness measurements derived from CBCT images., Methods: Twelve embalmed cadaver heads (5 female, 7 male; mean age: 77 years) were scanned with an i-CAT 17-19 unit (Imaging Sciences International, Hatfield, Pa) at 0.3 mm voxel size. Buccal alveolar bone height and thickness measurements of 65 teeth were made in standardized radiographic slices and compared with direct measurements made by dissection. All measurements were repeated 3 times by 2 independent raters and examined for intrarater and interrater reliability. Measurement means were compared with 2-tailed t tests. Agreement between direct and CBCT measurements was assessed by concordance correlation coefficients, Pearson correlation coefficients, and Bland-Altman plots., Results: Intrarater reliability was high as were interrater correlations for all measurements (≥0.97) except CBCT buccal bone thickness (0.90). CBCT measurements did not differ significantly from direct measurements, and there was no pattern of underestimation or overestimation. The mean absolute differences were 0.30 mm in buccal bone height and 0.13 mm in buccal bone thickness with 95% limits of agreement of -0.77 to 0.81 mm, and -0.32 to 0.38 mm, respectively. Agreement between the 2 methods was higher for the measurements of buccal bone height than buccal bone thickness, as demonstrated by concordance correlation coefficients of 0.98 and 0.86, respectively., Conclusions: For the protocol used in this study, CBCT can be used to quantitatively assess buccal bone height and buccal bone thickness with high precision and accuracy. Comparing the 2 sets of CBCT measurements, buccal bone height had greater reliability and agreement with direct measurements than did the buccal bone thickness measurements., (Copyright © 2011 American Association of Orthodontists. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.)