Anatomical Dimension of the Anterior Maxillary Alveolar Process: A Cone Beam Computed Tomography Study

Background and aim: Immediate implant therapy has become a widespread technique that immediately restoration of esthetic and function. Its dimensions should be determined after the exploration of the bone around the natural tooth. This study aimed to explore alveolar bone in the maxillary anterior region using cone-beam computed tomography, including CS 3D Imaging Software.
Materials and methods: It is a retrospective study conducted in the Dental Faculty of Medicine Monastir Tunisia. It included 400 CBCT Scans checked from the radiological center. On selected CBCT, fulfilling inclusion criteria, facial alveolar bone thicknesses in the coronal (point A), middle (point B), and apical third (point C) were calculated. Alveolar height, crest height, and tooth angulations were also determined. Using SPSS 21software, descriptive statistics including the mean and standard deviation (SD) were calculated. AS well T-test, Pearson correlation, and Friedman test were used to analyze the data. The significance level was set at 95%.
Results: Mean alveolar height of maxillary central incisor, lateral incisor, and canine was respectively 20.5±3.62, 20.73±2.53, and 20.36± 2.81 mm. The difference between sites was statistically significant. Males had longer alveolar height than females. The mean facial plate thicknesses of the alveolar bone across point measurements A, B, and C were 0.86, 0.90, and 0.99mm for maxillary central incisors, 1.4, 0.80, and 0.84 mm maxillary lateral incisors and 1.08, 0.67, and 0.66mm for maxillary canines. Mean alveolar crest height (D) of the anterior maxillary teeth were 2.32 ± 1.04, 2.20 ± 0.1 and 2, 41 ±1.7 respectively at the level of maxillary central incisors, lateral incisors, and canines.
Conclusion: Facial bone is thin: lateral incisors have the most significant bone thickness, followed by central incisors, then canines with the most negligible bone thickness among the anterior maxillary teeth. Males exhibited greater facial bone heights. Facial bone thickness depends on teeth' angulations. Immediate implant placement in this area requires careful radiological exploration, taking into consideration its features.