The application of X-ray microtomography for the assessement of root resorption caused by the orthodontic treatment of premolars

the purpose of this study was to demonstrate potential application of micro-computed tomography in the morphometric analysis of the root resorption in extracted human first premolars subjected to the orthodontic force. in one patient treated in the orthodontic clinic two mandibular first premolars subjected to orthodontic force for 4 weeks and one control tooth were selected for micro-computed tomographic analysis. the hardware device used in this study was a desktop x-ray microfocus ct scanner (skyscan 1072). the morphology of root’s surfaces was assessed by tview and computer tomography analyzer (ctan) softwares (skyscan, bvba) which allowed analysis of all microscans, identification of root resorption craters and measurement of their length, width and volume. microscans showed in details the surface morphology of the investigated teeth. the analysis of microscans allowed to detect 3 root resorption cavities in each of the orthodontically moved tooth and only one resorption crater in the control tooth. the volumes of the resorption craters in orthodontically-treated teeth were much larger than in a control tooth. micro-computed tomography is a reproducible technique for the three-dimensional non-invasive assessment of root’s morphology ex vivo. tview and ctan softwares are useful in accurate morphometric measurements of root’s resorption.