Diagnosis of incisive canal in patients referred to radiology department of dental faculty of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences using cone beam computed tomogtaphy

Considering importance of recognizing the position of incisive canal before inserting intraosseous implants and bone harvesting from the symphysis and to preventing from adverse effects after these surgeries, using appropriate imaging method is essential and necessary. Due to the high accuracy measurement and high quality of CBCT and also low received dose to patient the aim of this study was to evaluate and recognize the position of incisive canal using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT).
In this study, good quality CBCT mandible image of 60 patients including 32 women and 28 men with average ages of 41.3±2.5 were observed for diagnosing and recognizing the position of mandibular incisive canal using three observers separately. Data were statistically analyzed using SPSS software (version 20.0 for Windows, Chicago, IL, USA) and Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests.
Horizontal and vertical assessment was independent from the sex of patients. The incisive canal was recognizable in 89.8 percent of specimens. In vertical dimension, in 57.5 percent of specimens the canal was observed in the inferior one third and in 32.25 percent in the medial one third. In horizontal dimension, in 14.75 percent of specimens the canal was observed in the buccal one third, 52.75 percent in the medial one third and 22.25 percent in the lingual one third.
The quality of CBCT imaging and its accuracy and resolution can play an important role in the differentiation and determination of the position of incisive canal.