Correlation of radiomorphometric indices of the mandible and mandibular angle fractures

Aida Karagah; Reza Tabrizi; Fatemeh Pourahmadali; Ahad Alizadeh; Maryam Tofangchiha; Romeo Patini

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e10549

Correlation of radiomorphometric indices of the mandible and mandibular angle fractures

Heliyon. 2022 Sep 7;8(9):e10549. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e10549. eCollection 2022 Sep.

Authors

Aida Karagah¹, Reza Tabrizi², Fatemeh Pourahmadali³, Ahad Alizadeh⁴, Maryam Tofangchiha⁵, Romeo Patini⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
² Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
³ Student Research Committee, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
⁴ Medical Microbiology Research Center, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
⁵ Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
⁶ Department of Head, Neck and Sense Organs, School of Dentistry, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy.

Abstract

This study assessed the correlation of radiomorphometric indices of the mandible and mandibular angle fractures (MAFs) in an Iranian population. This retrospective study was conducted on 3D computed tomography (CT) scans of 118 patients between 18 to 60 years. The images were divided into two groups with MAFs and other types of mandibular fractures (non-MAF). The gonial angle, ramus height, condylar neck width, minimum ramus width, and mandibular length were all measured using MARCO PACS software. Age, gender, and presence and eruption status of third molar at the fracture side were all recorded. The correlation between these parameters and MAF was analyzed using R software (alpha = 0.05). Of all patients, 41 samples had MAF. The two groups were not significantly different regarding the mean age and gender (P > 0.05). The mean size of gonial angle and ramus height in the MAF group were significantly larger, and smaller than the corresponding values in the non-MAF group, respectively (P < 0.001). The median minimum ramus width in the MAF group was significantly smaller than that in the non-MAF group (P = 0.001). Patients with a large gonial angle had 6.6 times higher odds of MAF compared with other fracture types (P = 0.046). Condylar neck width, mandibular length, and erupted third molars had no significant correlation with type of fracture. Presence of impacted third molar increased the odds of MAF by 5.55 times. Patients with a large gonial angle, short ramus height, minimum ramus width, and impacted third molar are more susceptible to MAF. Surgeons can use these indices to predict the risk of MAF in trauma patients with such facial characteristics, and make a diagnosis by radiographic modalities.

Keywords: Computed tomography; Mandibular angle; Mandibular fractures; Radiomorphometric indices.