BACKGROUND: The aim of this retrospective study was to compare the measurements of bone mineral density (BMD) combined with volumetric dental tomography measurements taken from three main regions selected on the lower mandible, the right mandibular, medial mandibular, and left mandibular regions, in patients with ectodermal dysplasia and age-matched and gender-matched controls. Measurement of BMD in Hounsfield units (HUs) were evaluated using three-dimensional (3D) cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) imaging.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Mandibular bone tomography images were evaluated from 9 women and 5 men diagnosed with ectodermal dysplasia and a control group of 9 women and 5 men. The HU values obtained according to age and gender of the total 28 study participants were measured. Statistical analysis of the data used Student’s t-test.

RESULTS: BMD in the ectodermal dysplasia group was significantly lower compared with the BMD in the control group. Comparison of the left and right mandibular angulus regions showed that the BMD of patients with ectodermal dysplasia was significantly lower when compared with the control group in both regions, but no significant difference was found between the two groups in the BMD of the central mandibular region. CBCT was found to be an effective method for the measurement of BMD.

CONCLUSIONS: In patients with ectodermal dysplasia, reduced BMD should be taken into consideration when planning surgical interventions involving bone tissue and when planning implant surgery. The results of this study may be of value in dentistry and other fields of medicine.

Keywords: Bone Density, Cone-Beam Computed Tomography, Ectodermal Dysplasia, Adolescent, Child, Mandible, Turkey, young adult