Three-dimensional analysis of mesiobuccal root canal of Japanese maxillary first molar using Micro-CT

The objective of this study was to three-dimensionally observe the morphological characteristics of mesiobuccal root canals of Japanese maxillary first molars using microcomputed tomography (Micro-CT) and classify root canal variations. This study used 90 maxillary first molars. Three-dimensional reconstruction was performed using data obtained by Micro-CT, and cross-sections of the root canals were observed. Moreover, the root canal morphology was classified by the configuration and root canal diameter, and was evaluated for occurrence using the classification by Weine et al. (1969) as a reference. Overall, single root canals were observed in 44.4%, incomplete separation root canals in 22.3%, and completely separate root canals (upper and lower separation root canals) in 33.3%. Mesiobuccal root canals often had intricate configurations, and accessory root canals (lateral canals and apical ramifications) were observed in most of the mesiobuccal root canals (76.7%), irrespective of whether there were ramifications of the main root canals. While there were no marked differences in the incidence of root canal ramifications between this study and earlier reports, the incidence of accessory root canals was higher in this study. This result may be explained by the far more superior visualization ability of Micro-CT than conventional methods, which allowed the detection of microscopic apical ramifications previously difficult to observe.