Accuracy of conventional panoramic radiography and stereo radiography in determining the position of impacted maxillary canines

Introduction: In addition to conventional radiography, several other techniques such as stereoradiography have so far been proposed to determine the position of impacted maxillary canines. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of panoramic radiography and stereoradiography for determining the position of impacted maxillary canines. Materials and Methods: This was a prognostic, cross sectional study. A total of 30 impacted maxillary canines in 23 patients candidated for surgery were included. Four well coordinated observers separately determined the position of impacted maxillary canines using both panoramic radiography and stereoradiography. In the next phase, the exact position of impacted canines were determined through surgical exploration. Mc-Nemar and kappa index were applied for statistical data analysis. (α = 0.05). Results: The rate of correct diagnosis in stereoradiography and conventional radiography was 93.35% and 60.82% respectively which demonstrated a statistically significant difference. With each method, there were no significant differences among observers. Sensitivity and specificity with stereoradiography were calculated 91.98% and 94.78% respectively. With conventional radiography however these values dropped to 49.90% and 74.11% respectively. Conclusion: Stereoradiography seems quite reliable for determining the position of impacted maxillary canines. On the contrary, conventional radiography per se does not look precise enogh to determin the position of impacted maxillary canines.   Key words: Stereoradiography, Panoramic, Impacted tooth, Canine, Maxilla.