DENSITOMETRIC METHOD FOR ASSESSING BONE TISSUE DENSITY IN ANTERIOR MAXILLA WITH PROGNOSTIC PURPOSE

Abstract

Density studies, or the densitometric method, are used in the maxillofacial area to monitor the treatment course and to improve or correct, when necessary, the treatment plan for the number of dento-facial diseases or conditions.
 Materials and methods. To identify potentially weaker areas of the maxillary bone, through which pathological processes, including cystic formations, may spread, the bone density in the anterior part of the maxilla was assessed in 100 patients.
 Results. The study has demonstrated that the bone density in three areas – between the central incisors, between the central and lateral incisors, between the lateral incisor and the canine – is lower when compared to the same measurements taken between the canine and the first premolar of the upper jaw. The analysis of measurements obtained from all subjects has revealed the area with the lowest bone density is found in the region between the central incisors in the upper jaw.
 In the subsequent phase of the study, for predictive purposes, the ratio of bone density measurements in these areas with lower bone density to the same measurements in the adjacent region (between the canine and the first premolar of the upper jaw) was established. The average values of the bone density comparison were as follows: between the central incisors and the adjacent region, it was 0.77±0.01; between the central and lateral incisors and the adjacent region, it was 0.93±0.01; and between the lateral incisor and the canine and the adjacent region, it was 0.85±0.01. Based on these calculations, different risk levels for the potential spread of pathological processes in the maxillary fissure regions were identified.
 Conclusions. Radiological density in the areas of projection of the maxillary fissures is lower compared to the density of adjacent bone tissue. This indirectly suggests the vulnerability of these areas and their potential contribution to the diffuse nature of lesions and the formation of specific cystic forms.