Abstract
Advances in computed tomography (CT) technology – from traditional CT to cone beam (CB) CT – have benefitted both the dentists and their young patients. We therefore wanted to determine the prevalence of CBCT use in pediatric dentistry in Korea.
Our first approach was to conduct an institutional survey to evaluate the use of CBCT for diagnosing and evaluating dental problems in pediatric patients. Our second approach was to review any articles published during 2002–2011 in the Journal of the Korean Academy of Pediatric Dentistry that described clinical use of CBCT. The journal articles surveyed indicated that there were three areas in which CBCT was most useful. The most prevalent use was for diagnosis and monitoring of the growth of cystomas and other tumors in the mouth. The second most common use of CBCT was localization of impacted teeth and evaluation of their relations with adjacent teeth. The third use was to observe supernumerary teeth and evaluate their relations with the roots of adjacent teeth.
Compared with traditional CT, CBCT has shorter acquisition times and causes less radiation exposure to the patient. There are fewer side effects with CBCT because its accuracy allows minimally invasive treatment for such problems as impacted and supernumerary teeth.