For more than a century, conventional
radiographs have been utilised to assess periapical
disease and are still employed in many parts of the world.
The application of digital radiography has made a
tremendous and widespread impact on diagnostic
practice nowadays. Aim of the study was to compare the
diagnostic efficacy of conventional and digital imaging in
the detection of simulated periapical lesions.
Materials and methods: An in vitro comparative study of
digital and conventional intraoral radiographs was
conducted using human skull. A total of 5 defleshed
cadaver skulls were used in the study in which periapical
lesions were created mechanically. Both conventional and
digital images were acquired, processed, viewed and
assessed for the certainty of the presence or absence of
the periapical lesions and the assessment of the scores
were done. The results were evaluated using Lickert’s
scale and finally the assigned scores were compared using
Wilcoxon’s signed rank test.
Results: The difference between conventional and Dexis
digital radiographic methods was found to be statistically
not significant, except in the case of mechanically induced
periapical lesions created using 4 mm bur, where Digital
system outperformed conventional radiography.
Conclusions: Digital radiographic system is considered
equivalent to conventional radiography and hence can be
routinely used as an alternative to conventional film.
Keywords :
Conventional radiography; digital radiography; in vitro comparative study; intra oral periapical radiograph.