PERFORMANCE OF BLACK BONE MR IMAGING AS A CEPHALOMETRIC TOOL IN ORTHODONTICS

Dr.A.Angela Jency; Dr.C.L.Krithika; Dr.A.Kannan

Volume : VIII, Issue : IX, September - 2019

PERFORMANCE OF BLACK BONE MR IMAGING AS A CEPHALOMETRIC TOOL IN ORTHODONTICS

Dr. A. Angela Jency, Dr. C. L. Krithika, Dr. A. Kannan

Abstract :

Objective: CT and CBCT are potentially valuable tools in cephalometric analysis; they pose a risk of radiation exposure to the patients. MRI can be novel alternative to these modalities in cephalometric analysis. This study was conducted to determine the ease of landmark identification for Black bone, T1, T2 & Lateral cephalogram and to evaluate the performance of MR imaging as a cephalometric tool. Methods: A total of 11 patients seeking orthodontic treatment with available databases of lateral cephalogram were included in the study. Black bone , T1 and T2 weighted images were compared with lateral cephalogram using midline anatomical landmarks. Analysis was performed with Dolphin� cephalometric software by one assessor. The cephalometric land marks of the hard and soft tissue were categorized into linear and angular measurements. The coefficient of variation was obtained for Lateral cephalogram, Black Bone, T1 and T2 images. Statistical analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS Software, version 23) of Microsoft windows. Paired T–test was used to compare the mean value between two points. Results: The ease of landmark identification was difficult on T2 weighted images but on Black bone images it was comparable to lateral cephalogram. Identification of posterior nasal spine (PNS) poses a challenge especially in partially erupted wisdom teeth. Conclusion: Lateral cephalogram, CT and CBCT are ideal tools in cephalometric analysis but pose a risk of radiation hazard. Hence Black bone MRI can be an effective non ionizing imaging modality over the conventional methods. Future research in using black bone MRI for cephalometric analysis can validate the results of this study.