Assessment of mental and lingual foramen, mandibular canal and maxillary sinus by CBCT in Southern Mexico. How important is it?

This study aimed to determine the frequency of anatomical variants of the jaws considered critical and their limitations in implant surgical procedures by analyzing conebeam computed tomography (CBCT) scans. A random sample of 46 CBCT images was retrieved. Computed tomography (CT) scans with correct visualization of the anatomical area to be studied with different fields of view (FOV) were included: 5X5, 8X5, and 8X8. Ex3D-plus software was used to obtain the various measurements of each patient. The statistical program STATA V.15 was used, and p=≤0.05 was considered significant. In total, six anatomical structures corresponding to 46 CBCT images were analyzed. Seventy-eight percent of mentonian foramen (n=39) were oval, while 16% (n=8) were circular. In 81% of the CT scans (n=21), no accessory mentonian foramen were seen. In 100% of patients (n=25), anterior loops were present. In addition, 96% (n=24) presented lingual foramen. According to gender, it was found that the average distance between the maxillary sinus floor and the disto-vestibular and palatal apices of the upper second molar was significantly greater in men than in women (p≤0.05). In conclusión, dentists should have a comprehensive knowledge of the anatomy of the maxilofacial. Based on the results reported in our study, it should be considered that structures that have been classically determined to be inconstant, such as the lingual foramen and the anterior loop, should now be considered part of normal anatomy.