Evaluation of the mandibular canal visibility on cone-beam computed tomography images of the mandible.

BACKGROUND The mandibular canal (MC) is an important and necessary landmark that should be considered before any surgery in the posterior region of the mandible. This study is aimed to evaluate the visibility and position of the MC in an Iranian population using cone-beam computed tomography. METHODS In this cross-sectional study, cone-beam computed tomography images of 69 patients, which were available as soft copies in the archives of the databases in the Department of Oral Radiology at Hamadan University of Medical Sciences (Hamadan, Iran), were analyzed. The visibility, corticalization, and position of the MC were assessed by 2 expert oral radiologists independently. The χ2 test, unpaired t test, and 1-way analysis of variance were used for analysis. RESULTS The right and left MCs were clearly visible in 89.6% and 84.7% of the cases, respectively. Among 87.5% of cases, the MC was observed simultaneously in 2 sides. Position of the MC in relation to surrounding structures showed lowest asymmetry at the second premolar area. There were no statistically significant difference between sex and the evaluated parameters. CONCLUSIONS Cone-beam computed tomography was successful in most cases in displaying the MC. The areas with most MC visibility in the right and left sides were the second and third molar regions, respectively. This visibility declined forwardly in both sides.