Panoramic Radiographs for Detecting Osteopenia: A Pilot Study

Abstract

Osteoporosis characterized by low bone mass/osteopenia can be identified using radiomorphometric indices in routine panoramic radiographs. This study estimates the prevalence of osteopenia in 50-80 years age group, using panoramic mandibular index (PMI), mental index (MI) and mandibular cortical index (MCI). PMI, MI and MCI were applied on 36 panoramic radiographs; MI and MCI were compared with PMI. The prevalence of osteopenia was 11.1% with PMI and 44.4% with MCI. Using MI, the prevalence was 2.8% and 33.3% with 3mm and 4.77mm threshold respectively. The prevalence of osteopenia detected was highest using MCI (44.4%). Considering PMI as gold standard, MI with 4.77 mm threshold showed better agreement with PMI.