Use of Cone-Beam Computed Tomography in the Diagnosis and Treatment of an Unusual Canine Abnormality

• Main Authors: Archana Gopalakrishnan, Unnikrishna K., Anita Balan, Haris P. S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Sultan Qaboos University 2017-05-01
• Series: Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal
• Subjects: diagnostic imaging; cone-beam computed tomography; tooth abnormalities; case report; india.
• Online Access: https://journals.squ.edu.om/index.php/squmj/article/view/2215

Diagnosis and treatment planning are important for successful endodontic treatment. We report a 24-year old male who presented to the Government Dental College in Kozhikode, Kerala, India, in 2015 with pain in his right upper canine. A digital periapical radiograph indicated the presence of a supernumerary tooth superimposing the root of the canine. However, cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) confirmed that the supernumerary tooth was an illusion and that the canine root had a sharp invagination involving the labial and pulpal dentin surfaces, with evidence of periapical bone destruction. A blunt resection was performed at the level of the invagination and the resected end was filled with a dentin substitute. At a one-year follow-up, the patient was asymptomatic and the periapical region appeared to be healing well. This report highlights the importance of CBCT in visualising abnormal canine morphology, thus allowing appropriate endodontic treatment.