[Anatomical presentation of edentulous sites in the posterior maxillary in cone beam computed tomography]

This study aimed to analyze the bone anatomy of edentulous sites in the posterior maxillary by cone beam computed tomography (CBCT).

A total of 100 CBCT radiographs from patients with missing maxillary posterior teeth were obtained, resulting in a sample size of 217 edentulous sites. The width and height of edentulous were assessed by three-dimensional reconstruction. In addition, the angle A and morphology of the maxillary sinus walls were evaluated.

The mean bone height was 9.53 mm, and the percentage of sites than 10 mm was 62.67% (136/217). The mean bone width was 9.30 mm, and the percentage of sites more than 6 mm was 91.71% (199/217). The bone height decreased from premolar to molar areas, but the opposite trend was observed in bone width. Regarding the morphology of the sinus floor, 64.52% exhibited an oblique configuration. In angle A, the group of less than 30° was 10.14%, 30°-60° was 42.40%, and greater than 60° was 47.47%.

A high percentage of edentulous sites in the posterior maxillary requires sinus floor elevation to allow the placement of dental implants. Thus, the use of CBCT scans is recommended to evaluate the anatomical structure of the maxillary sinus for reasonable implant planning.