Evaluation of osseous changes in dental panoramic radiography using radiomorphometric indices in patients with hyperthyroidism

ABSTRACT Objective The aim of the present study was to compare radiomorphometric measurements on panoramic images of patients with hyperthyroidism (HT) to those of a control population. Study design In this retrospective study, the mental index (MI), inferior panoramic mandibular index (PMI), antegonial index (AI), gonial index (GI), and mandibular cortical index (MCI) were evaluated on dental panoramic radiographs (DPRs) of 40 patients with HT and 40 healthy age- and sex-matched individuals and compared between the groups. Quantitative data (MI, PMI, AI, and GI) were analyzed with the Student t and Mann-Whitney U tests. Categorical data (MCI) were analyzed with the chi-squared test. Results Statistically significant differences between the patient and control groups were found for inferior PMI (p = 0.001) and AI (p = 0.017) values, with smaller mean values among the patients. However, the measurements of MI (P = 0.59) and GI (P = 0.164) and the MCI distribution (P = 0.13) were similar in both groups. Conclusions Evaluating the radiomorphometric indices of inferior PMI and AI on the DPRs of patients with HT who are at high risk of secondary osteoporosis could be helpful in the early diagnosis of osteoporotic changes and in formulating surgical treatment plans.