Comparison of the Efficacy of Digital Caliper and a Newly Designed Digital Bone Gauge for Measurement of Edentulous Alveolar Ridge Width

Objectives: An efficient, safe, affordable and easily accessible measuring instrument for quantitative assessment of bone prior to dental implant placement enables more accurate treatment planning. Costly imaging modalities are neither widely available, nor affordable for some patients. This study sought to assess the efficacy of a newly designed digital bone gauge for measurement of bone width with 0.1 mm accuracy in comparison with a digital caliper.Methods: Using CATIA software, three-dimensional (3D) model of the instrument was designed and its experimental version was fabricated in two models and tested on an edentulous alveolar ridge model. The efficacy of the instrument was assessed by comparing the values obtained by the designed bone gauge with direct measurements made by a digital caliper. The buccolingual width of the edentulous ridge was measured at the crestal level and at 1, 2, 3 and 4 mm apical to the bone crest by the designed bone gauge and digital caliper. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of the values was calculated.Results: Virtual and experimental models of the instrument were designed and patented. The designed instrument was successfully capable of measuring bone width with 0.1 mm accuracy. The ICC values at 1, 2, 3 and 4 mm apical to the bone crest and at all levels were calculated to be 0.973, 0.994, 0.997, 0.998 and 0.998, respectively.Conclusion: The designed digital bone gauge can efficiently measure bone width at different levels with high accuracy. It can provide valuable and reliable information about bone width at initial clinical examination

Quality and quantity of bone at intraoral graft donor sites in type 2 diabetic patients versus healthy controls: A cone-beam computed tomography study

Objectives: This study aimed to compare the quality and quantity of bone at intraoral autogenous graft donor sites in type II diabetes mellitus (DM) patients versus healthy controls using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). Materials and methods: This case-control study was conducted on CBCT scans of 50 DM patients and 50 healthy controls between 20-70 years. Maximum height, width, length, and volume of harvestable bone at the symphysis, ramus, palate, and tuberosity were measured bilaterally. The Hounsfield unit (HU) was also calculated to assess bone quality. The two groups were compared regarding the quality and quantity of harvestable bone using an independent t-test. The effect of confounders was analyzed by the regression model (alpha = 0.05). Results: DM patients had significantly lower harvestable bone volume at the symphysis, ramus, and tuberosity than healthy controls (p < 0.001) but this difference was not significant at the palate (p = 0.957). Also, bone quality was significantly lower at the symphysis, ramus, palate, and tuberosity in DM patients (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Diabetic patients had significantly lower bone quality and quantity at intraoral graft donor sites than healthy controls. Mandibular symphysis had higher bone volume and density than ramus, palate, and tuberosity for graft harvesting in diabetic patients

Effects of Maxillary Movements on Lips Following Orthognathic Surgery: A Retrospective Non-Randomized Clinical Trial

Introduction Lips play a fundamental role in facial attractiveness and in decisions pertaining to orthognathic surgery