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Background: It is important to know the correct anatomical location of the mandibular foramen to obtain successful anaesthesia of inferior alveolar nerve and to prevent injury to the mandibular vessels and nerve, during a variety of oral and maxillofacial surgical procedures. The aim of this study is to evaluate localisation of the mandibular foramen in patients with the third molars using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT).Materials and Methods: Cone-beam computed tomography was used to determine the location of the mandibular foramen in 67 patients (totally 99 sides) with unilateral or bilateral impacted mandibular third molars.Results: The distance from the posterior border of the mandibular ramus to mandibular foramen did not differ significantly among the other angulations. But the difference between vertical and horizontal angulation of the impacted mandibular third molars according to 'fd' values (the shortest distance between mandibular foramen and the posterior border of mandibular ramus) was found to be statistically significant (p < 0.05).Conclusions: The present study provides new information to the literature concerning relationship between the location of the mandibular foramen and the mandibular third molars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: In this study, we examined the mandibular trabecular bone structures by performing fractal dimension (FD) analysis in patients who underwent renal transplantation (RTx)., Methods: Our study is an observational study with 69 RTx patients and 35 control group patients. The mean FD values of the patient and control groups were calculated and compared. In addition, biochemical parathyroid hormone (PTH), serum calcium, phosphorus, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and vitamin-D parameters and FD values of both groups were analyzed., Results: FD values were significantly lower in the patient group than in the healthy group (p < .05). In the RTx group compared to the control group, ALP (90.71 ± 34.25-66.54 ± 16.8, respectively) (p < .001) and PTH (75.76 ± 38.01-38.17 ± 12.39, respectively) (p < .001) values were higher. There was a positive correlation between the FD values and ALP (r spearman  = .305, p = .011) and a negative correlation between FD values and vitamin-D (r spearman  = .287, p = .017) of patients with RTx., Conclusion: FD values were found to be lower in patients who underwent RTx compared to the control group. It should be considered that FD analysis can be a method that can be used to evaluate trabecular bone structure in patients undergoing RTx., (© 2024 The Authors. Clinical Transplantation published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Buccal bifurcation cyst (BBC) is an uncommon inflammatory odontogenic cyst that generally occurs at the buccal region of the permanent mandibular first molars in children aged 6-8 years. The diagnosis of BBC cannot be made from the histopathologic features; therefore, diagnosis is primarily based on specific clinical and radiographic findings. In this case report, we present the clinical and radiological findings, including ultrasonography (USG) and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images, of a 10-year-old boy who was referred with a complaint of swelling on the lower right jaw. According to the radiographic and clinical findings, the differential diagnosis of this lesion included lateral radicular cyst, lateral periodontal cyst, dentigerous cyst, eruption cyst, and others. Recently, in addition to classical radiographies and CBCT, USG has been considered important for diagnosis. In particular, if a cyst produces a perforation in the cortical bone, it is helpful to make a pre-diagnosis with USG.

Objective:: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the compatibility of ultrasonographic data with hand-wrist radiographs taken to determine the extent of pubertal growth and bone age in patients and investigate the usability of ionizing radiation-free ultrasonography instead of conventional radiography., Methods:: In this study, a total of 120 children from 10 to 17 years old (mean age was 168 months ± 27.5 months) were treated with routine radiographs before orthodontic treatment, and ultrasonographic imaging was performed on the wrists the same day. Researchers examined the phalanges, sesamoid bone, and radial bone distal epiphysis-diaphysis comparatively in each patient by both imaging methods and statistical evaluation., Results:: There was no statistically significant difference between conventional radiography and ultrasonography values at 13 points except for PP1 (proximal phalanges of the first finger), PP2 (proximal phalanges of the second finger), and radial epiphysis (p > 0.05). PP1, PP2, and radial epiphysis showed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05). The CBA (bone age obtained from conventional radiographs) of the females was found to be larger than their CA (chronological age) and their UBA (ultrasonographic bone age). For males; the means of the CBA, UBA and CA values close to each other. In females and males; there was a strong correlation between the CA, the UBA and the CBA (p < 0.01)., Conclusion:: Ultrasonography gives detailed information about epiphyseal diaphysis relations. It can be used as an alternative to conventional radiography in the detection of bone age and pubertal growth, owing to the absence of ionizing radiation.

Stafne bone defects (SBDs) are asymptomatic radiolucent lingual/buccal bone lesions of the lower jaw and are frequently caused by soft tissue inclusion. These defects have a cystlike appearance on plain radiographs. The diagnosis of this defect is incidental because patients do not usually present clinical symptoms. The common variant of SBD exists at the third molar region of the mandible below the inferior alveolar canal. To date, only 1 case of multilocular SBD has been reported in the literature, including both clinical cases and archaeological specimens. The purpose of the current study was to describe a new case of multilocular appearance of SBD near the angle of the mandibula that was diagnosed with the aid of a three-dimensional cone beam computed tomographic scan.

Heterotrophic soft tissue calcification occurs with the deposit of calcium salts in soft tissue rather than bone. The aim of this report is to describe cone-beam computed tomographic (CBCT) and ultrasonographic (US) findings of 2 cases of soft tissue calcifications that were initially diagnosed as submandibular or parotid sialolithiasis. Multiple soft tissue calcifications were evaluated by panoramic radiography, CBCT imaging, and US imaging in a 50-year-old male patient and a 30-year-old male patient. Calcifications were detected in the soft tissue of the submandibular area at axial, coronal, and multiplanar reformatted examinations and were prediagnosed as sialolithiasis. US examination was conducted to determine the complete relation between the soft tissues and the calcifications. In conclusion, high-resolution dental volumetric tomography with a low radiation dose is the optimal diagnostic tool to analyze the skeletal structure of the maxillofacial region in 3 dimensions. However, it is not sufficient to examine the soft tissues. US imaging is a useful diagnostic tool to evaluate the relation between the soft tissues and the calcifications in the submandibular area., (Copyright © 2014 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)