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Scanning Skeletal Remains for Bone Mineral Density in Forensic Contexts
Published on: January 29, 2018
Assessment of mandibular bone mineral density in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus
1Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Cumhuriyet University, Faculty of Dentistry, 58140 Sivas, Turkey. sinanay@cumhuriyet.edu.tr
Objectives:
To assess mandibular bone mineral density in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus using panoramic radiographs.
Methods:
Nineteen patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and 17 control subjects participated in the study. Bone mineral density measurements were performed on the panoramic radiographs with the help of a five-step copper stepwedge phantom, attached to each film cassette, which was calibrated before hand by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The analysis was performed on digitized images by dedicated software (Scion Image). The accuracy of the measurement technique was also evaluated by cross-calibration with a DXA phantom.
Results:
Mean mandibular bone mineral density (g cm(-2)) was 1.53+/-0.27 in women and 1.52+/-0.29 in men with type 2 diabetes. In age and gender matched control subjects the values were 1.56+/-0.28 and 1.46+/-0.23 in women and in men, respectively. No statistically significant difference was observed between groups in mandibular bone mineral density.
Conclusions:
The present study showed that bone mineral density of the mandible does not seem to be affected in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. We also observed that a panoramic radiograph could serve for accurate mandibular bone density determination, when calibrated well with the DXA method.
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