CBCT Assessment of Mental Foramen Position Relative to Anatomical Landmarks

Abstract

Purpose. This study was carried out on an Iranian population aiming to investigate mental foramen position relative to inferior border of mandible and skeletal midline and its gender and age differences on CBCT projections. Materials and Methods. A number of 180 CBCT images of patients were analyzed in different planes (tangential, cross-sectional, and axial). The distances from the superior border of mental foramen to the inferior border of mandible and from the anterior border of mental foramen to the midline were calculated. Results. The mean distance from mental foramen to the inferior border of mandible in the right side was 13.26 mm (SD +/- 2.34) and in the left side was 13.37 mm (SD +/- 2.19). There was a statistically significant difference between genders in terms of the distance between mental foramen and inferior border of mandible (P value = 0.000). The mean distances from mental foramen to midline were 25.86 mm (SD +/- 0.27) and 25.53 mm (SD +/- 0.31) in the right and left sides, respectively. Conclusions. The vertical and horizontal positions of mental foramen can be determined from stable anatomical landmarks such as mandibular inferior border and skeletal midline in both dentulous and edentulous patients. The distance from the superior border of mental foramen to the inferior border of mandible exhibited sexual dimorphism.