INTERPRETATION OF BITEWING RADIOGRAPHS .1. EVALUATION OF THE PRESENCEOF APPROXIMAL LESIONS

Objectives: Bitewing radiographs are the main tool for approximal cari es detection. However, interpretation of findings is affected by numer ous factors, such as beam angulation, exposure conditions, morphologic variations, etc. The objective of the present study was to compare th e ability to detect virtually identical, artificial lesions in differe nt tooth surfaces. Methods: The in vitro model included preparation an d radiologic evaluation of approximal artificial lesions in premolars and molars in depths ranging from 0.00 mm to 1.50 mm. Results: Signifi cant differences were found in the prospect of a lesion detection betw een the different lesion depths (p < 0.0000) and between the different surfaces examined (p < 0.05). The interaction between lesion depth an d tooth surface was significant at the 0.0001 level (ANOVA with repeat ed measures). Conclusions: The results indicate that initial approxima l lesions of uniform size are more readily detected in premolars than in molars and that the chance of an incipient lesion to remain undetec ted is twice as high in molars than in premolars. Copyright (C) 1996 E lsevier Science Ltd.