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Cross-Sectional Study of Mandibular Canal Branching in Regions Affected by Dental Inflammation with Cone Beam Computed Tomography

The present study aimed to investigate the occurrence of mandibular canal alterations in regions with dental inflammation by means of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). A database of 2,484 CBCTs was reviewed for identifying dental inflammation in mandibular alveolar ridges. The final sample consisted of 150 CBCTs, including 91 females and 59 males, with ages ranging from 13 to 89 years (mean age of 47.06; ± SD=18.722). The presence and location of dental inflammation, gender, age, as well as presence and location of mandibular canal branching (MCB) were evaluated. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Chi-square, and T-test were applied to verify the statistical relationship of the data. There were 178 images of dental inflammation on 150 CBCTs, mainly located at molars’ region (75 %). Apical lesions were the most common type of dental inflammation found (79 or 44.4 % of the sample), followed by pericoronitis (32; 18.0 %). This study identified 135 mandibular canal branches in the exams that presented dental inflammation. The MCB were also most commonly located at molars’ region (74.07 %). No statistical difference was identified regarding the distribution of mandibular canal branching in relation to the sites with dental inflammation (p=0.370).The MCB found were mostly single (86 or 63.7 % of the total). Sex had no influence on mandibular canal branching occurrence (p=0.308), not did age (p=0.728). A high prevalence of mandibular canal branching was observed in the regions where dental inflammation were identified, most commonly found in the molar region.