Radiomorphometric evaluation of third molar emptise pattern in patients with emptied teeth

ABSTRACT Objective: The primary aim of this retrospective study was to radiomorphometrically analyse the impaction pattern of third molars in patients with impacted teeth. The secondary aim was to evaluate the relationship between the gonial angle and incisal angle of the impaction positions of third molars in patients with impacted teeth. Method: Impacted third molars of 120 patients with CBCT images taken to evaluate impacted teeth at the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology of Akdeniz University, Faculty of Dentistry between January 2020 and April 2024 were examined. Impaction patterns of third molars were recorded according to the Pell & Gregory and Winter classification. Gonial angle was measured on panoramic reconstruction images obtained from CBCT. Incisal angle measurement was performed on the most appropriate section images determined as a result of examining the sagittal section images of CBCT. Statistical analysis data were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics 25 © Copyright SPSS Inc. 1989, 2017 software. Results: In patients with impacted teeth, impacted third molars numbered 18 (p=0.036), 38 (p=0.001) and 48 (p=0.011) were found to have significantly different frequencies. When the Pell & Gregory-Winter classifications and Gonial-incisal angle values of patients with at least one impacted tooth excluding the third molar were compared with those with only impacted third molars, no significant relationship was found. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that impacted third molars were significantly less common in patients with impacted teeth. The findings revealed that there was an inverse relationship between the presence of impacted teeth and the probability of third molars remaining impacted. This study may be instructive in predicting the impaction patterns of third molars and the factors affecting them, as well as being an important guide in terms of mandibular morphometry. Key words: cone beam computed tomography, gonial angle, impaction pattern, impacted tooth, incisal angle