3D imaging of proximal caries in posterior teeth using optical coherence tomography

Yasushi Shimada,Junji Tagami,Takashi Miyazaki,Kazuyuki Araki,Alireza Sadr,Michael F Burrow,Masahiro Yoshiyama,Keiichi Hosaka,Yasunori Sumi,Yuan Zhou

doi:10.1038/s41598-020-72838-2

Abstract

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) can create cross-sectional images of tooth without X-ray exposure. This study aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of 3D imaging of OCT for proximal caries in posterior teeth. Thirty-six human molar teeth with 51 proximal surfaces visibly 6 intact, 16 slightly demineralized, and 29 distinct carious changes were mounted to take digital radiographs and 3D OCT images. The sensitivity, specificity and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for the diagnosis of enamel caries and dentin caries were calculated to quantify the diagnostic ability of 3D OCT in comparison with digital radiography. Diagnostic accuracy was evaluated by the agreement with histology using weighted Kappa. OCT showed significantly higher sensitivity, AUC and Kappa values than radiography. OCT can be a safer option for the diagnosis of proximal caries in posterior teeth that can be applied to the patients without X-ray exposure.

Highlights

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) can create cross-sectional images of tooth without X-ray exposure
3D imaging of intensity-based OCT was performed for evaluation of the proximal contact areas of molar teeth for the diagnosis of proximal caries
Null hypothesis of this study was that 3D image of OCT would have no improvement of caries diagnosis for proximal caries in posterior teeth and could not provide the image for the decision of intervene approach

Summary

Introduction

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) can create cross-sectional images of tooth without X-ray exposure. This study aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of 3D imaging of OCT for proximal caries in posterior teeth. Thirty-six human molar teeth with 51 proximal surfaces visibly 6 intact, 16 slightly demineralized, and 29 distinct carious changes were mounted to take digital radiographs and 3D OCT images. OCT can be a safer option for the diagnosis of proximal caries in posterior teeth that can be applied to the patients without X-ray exposure. Visual examination and radiographic identification are the most commonly used diagnostic tools for detecting carious lesions. The International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS), which is based on visual examination, was introduced as a novel strategy aiding diagnosis and classification of carious lesion size and subsequent treatment decisions[10]. Visual examination is not appropriate to detect the slight cavitation of caries even under laboratory conditions[9]

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