Abstract:
Background The wide application of cone-beam CT (CBCT) in clinical diagnosis has brought great convenience to dental doctors and patients, and compared with traditional X-ray films, the increase in cumulative radiation dose has attracted the attention of researchers.
Objective To investigate the effect of different CBCT scanning times on the clinical diagnosis and spatial resolution of impacted third molars.
Methods A total of 30 patients, aged 22-36 years, admitted to our hospital in December 2020 for the removal of impacted teeth were enrolled. NewTom 5G was used for CBCT in two modes, i.e., 18 s eco (scanning time: 2.4 s) and 24 s Enhanced (standard mode; scanning time: 4.8 s), and the two modes were compared in terms of accuracy, radiation dose, and spatial resolution based on the measurement standard of the vertical distance between the nearest root apex of the right mandibular third molar (48) to the mandibular nerve canal and the inferior alveolar nerve canal (n=30) and the vertical distance between the nearest root apex of the right maxillary third molar (18) to the bottom of the maxillary sinus and the bottom of the maxillary sinus (n=20). By changing the scanning time, the CTP528 module of CatPhan 600 phantom was used to measure the spatial resolution of NewTom 5G and the radiation dose received by the module.
Results There were no significant differences between the two modes in the vertical distance between the nearest root apex of the right mandibular third molar to the mandibular nerve canal and the inferior alveolar nerve canal (D1 and D2) (P=0.738) and the vertical distance between the nearest root apex of the right maxillary third molar to the bottom of the maxillary sinus and the bottom of the maxillary sinus (D3 and D4) (P=0.260). The radiation dose of 24 s Enhanced (DLP2, CTDIvol2) was twice of 18 s eco (DLP1, CTDIvol1)(DLP1 vs DLP2: 24.78 ± 4.86 mGy·cm vs 50.34 ± 10.08 mGy·cm; CTDIvol1 vs CTDIvol2: 2.75 ± 0.54 mGy vs 5.56 ± 1.16 mGy; P<0.001, respectively).
Conclusion Both the 18 s eco mode and the 24 s Enhanced standard mode can meet the requirements of clinical diagnosis, and the radiation dose of the former is about half of that of the later. The 18 s eco mode can be used in CBCT to help accurate diagnosing impacted third molars, so as to reduce scanning time and radiation exposure to patients.