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VOLUME 17 , ISSUE 10 ( October, 2016 ) > List of Articles

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Assessment of Interexaminer Agreement in the Detection of Condyle Morphology and positioning with Two Methods: Radiographic and Tomographic

Ana CCF Conti, JS de Almeida Giunco, PV Pedron Oltramari-Navarro, TM Freire Fernandes, R de Lima Navarro, MR de Almeida

Citation Information : Conti AC, Giunco JD, Oltramari-Navarro PP, Fernandes TF, Navarro RD, de Almeida M. Assessment of Interexaminer Agreement in the Detection of Condyle Morphology and positioning with Two Methods: Radiographic and Tomographic. J Contemp Dent Pract 2016; 17 (10):837-843.

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10024-1940

Published Online: 01-02-2017

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2016; The Author(s).


Abstract

Aim

This study aims at evaluating the interexaminer agreement between radiographic and tomographic methods to determine condyle morphological variations and positioning.

Materials and methods

The sample comprised 100 individuals aged 13 to 30 years, from the patient files of University of North Paraná. The assessment of condyles morphology and positioning was performed in images of digital panoramic radiography (DPR) and reconstructed panoramic images from the cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans, by using the Dolphin three-dimensional (3D) program. The condyle morphology was categorized as flat, convex, and angular as well as its positioning classified into anterior, posterior, and concentric. Three calibrated examiners performed this subjective evaluation. After that, another examiner performed an objective assessment of the condyles positioning using tomographic sagittal scans of the condyles, applying the same 3D program. This objective evaluation of the condyle position, considered the gold standard (GS), was achieved by using a formula based on the measurement values of the joint spaces, anterior and posterior. The kappa test was used to assess the interexaminer agreement in determining the condyles morphology and positioning, as well as between the condyle positioning results determined by the examiners and the GS.

Results

The results showed poor agreement among examiners and between the subjective and objective condyle positioning evaluation.

Conclusion

It was concluded that the panoramic radiography (PR), either digitalized or reconstructed from CBCT scans, is not suitable for determining variations in condyle morphology and position.

Clinical significance

Whenever it is necessary to evaluate the mandibular condyle during the orthodontic screening, the orthodontist should consider another image modality better than the PR.

How to cite this article

de Almeida Giunco JS, Oltramari-Navarro PVP, Freire Fernandes TMF, de Lima Navarro R, de Almeida MR, de Castro Ferreira Conti AC. Assessment of Interexaminer Agreement in the Detection of Condyle Morphology and positioning with Two Methods: Radiographic and Tomographic. J Contemp Dent Pract 2016;17(10):837-843.


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