Imaging Sci Dent.  2024 Jun;54(2):191-199. 10.5624/isd.20240016.

Impact of the spatial orientation of the patient’s head, metal artifact reduction, and tube current on cone-beam computed tomography artifact expression adjacent to a dental implant: A laboratory study using a simulated surgical guide

• Barros-Costa M
• Barros-Candido JR
• Sampaio-Oliveira M
• Freitas DQ
• Sverzut AT
• Oliveira ML

• KMID: 2557121
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5624/isd.20240016

Abstract

Purpose
The aim of this study was to evaluate image artifacts in the vicinity of dental implants in cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans obtained with different spatial orientations, tube current levels, and metal artifact reduction algorithm (MAR) conditions.
Materials and Methods
One dental implant and 2 tubes filled with a radiopaque solution were placed in the posterior region of a mandible using a surgical guide to ensure parallel alignment. CBCT scans were acquired with the mandible in 2 spatial orientations in relation to the X-ray projection plane (standard and modified) at 3 tube current levels: 5, 8, and 11 mA. CBCT scans were repeated without the implant and were reconstructed with and without MAR. The mean voxel and noise values of each tube were obtained and compared using multi-way analysis of variance and the Tukey test (α = 0.05).
Results
Mean voxel values were significantly higher and noise values were significantly lower in the modified orientation than in the standard orientation (P<0.05). MAR activation and tube current levels did not show significant differences in most cases of the modified spatial orientation and in the absence of the dental implant (P>0.05).
Conclusion
Modifying the spatial orientation of the head increased brightness and reduced spatial orientation noise in adjacent regions of a dental implant, with no influence from the tube current level and MAR.

Keyword

Cone-Beam Computed Tomography; Artifacts; Patient Positioning; Dental Implants; Titanium