Comparison of micro-CT and cone beam CT on the feasibility of assessing trabecular structures in mandibular condyle.

Abstract

To evaluate the accuracy of CBCT in assessing trabecular structures. Two human mandibles were scanned by micro-CT (Skyscan 1173 high-energy spiral scan micro-CT; Skyscan NV, Kontich, Belgium) and CBCT (3D Accuitomo 170; Morita, Japan). The CBCT images were reconstructed with 0.5 and 1 mm thicknesses. The condylar images were selected for registration. A parallel algorithm for histogram computation was introduced to perform the registration. A mutual information (MI) value was used to evaluate the match between the images obtained from micro-CT and CBCT. In comparison with the micro-CT image for the two samples, the CBCT image with 0.5 mm thickness has a MI value of 0.873 and 0.903 while that with 1.0 mm thickness has a MI value of 0.741 and 0.752. The CBCT images with 0.5 mm thickness were better matched with micro-CT images. CBCT shows comparable accuracy with high-resolution micro-CT in assessing trabecular structures. CBCT can be a feasible tool to evaluate osseous changes of jaw bones.