Panoramic radiographic study of mandibular canal and mental foramen in a selected Iranian population

Background and Aim: The mandibular canal and mental foramen are two important anatomic landmarks that should be noted before dental surgeries in the posterior region of the mandible. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of digital panoramic images in visualizing the mandibular canal and mental foramen. The horizontal location of mental foramen among Iranians was also investigated. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 150 digital panoramic images acquired from the radiology database at the Dental Faculty of Hamedan University of Medical Sciences were analyzed. All the panoramic radiographs were shot by a digital panoramic machine, CRANEX ® Tome Ceph (Soredex, Helsinki, Finland), considering standard exposure parameters. The visibility of mandibular canal and mental foramen and the horizontal location of mental foramen were assessed by three examiners independently. Results: The visibility of mandibular canal and mental foramen on both left and right sides was 96.6% and 79.7%, respectively. The most frequent horizontal position of mental foramen was in line with the second premolar on the right (48%) and left (51.3%) sides, followed by the area between the first and second premolar. The mean distance between two mental foramina was 49.23 mm and 46.89 mm in males and females, respectively. Conclusion: Although panoramic images showed a satisfactory accuracy in identifying mandibular canal and mental foramen, caution should be taken, especially when identifying mental foramen.