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Publisher: Peytchinski Publishing Ltd.
ISSN: 1312-773X (Online)
Issue: 2025, vol. 31, issue4
Subject Area: Dental Medicine
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DOI: 10.5272/jimab.2025314.6537
Published online: 09 October 2025
Original article
J of IMAB. 2025 Oct-Dec;31(4):6537-6541
CONE-BEAM COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY AND LIGHT MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION OF HUMAN EXTRACTED MOLARS — AN IN VITRO STUDY
Elvira Gyulbenkiyan1
, Rossen Borisov2, Angela Gusiyska1,
1) Department of Conservative Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Medical University Sofia, Bulgaria.
2) Department of Imaging and Oral Diagnostics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Medical University - Sofia, Bulgaria.
ABSTRACT:
Purpose: The aim of this in vitro study was to examine the distinct types of isthmuses using a light microscope and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT).
Material/Methods: Fifty-five extracted human molars were used for this study. CBCT was used to conduct the study. After the CBCT analysis, all teeth were inspected under a light microscope, and the results were compared with those of the CBCT examination.
Results: The results from the CBCT at the coronary third of the root canals were as follows: Types I, II, III, IV, and V isthmuses were found in 50.9%, 16.4%, 1.8%, 7.3%, and 23.6% of all samples, respectively. For the middle third, we found Types I, II, III, IV, and V isthmuses in 40.0%, 23.6%, 1.8%, 16.4%, and 18.2% of the samples, respectively. For the apical third, we identified Types I, II, III, IV, and V isthmuses in 60.0%, 29.1%, 5.5%, 1.8%, and 3.6% of all samples, respectively. The results obtained from the microscopic examination were similar to those from the CBCТ study. There is no confirmed statistically significant difference between the examination methods (p = 0.07).
Conclusion: Three-dimensional examinations have a significant role among the methods for diagnosing and detecting an isthmus in the complex root canal system, especially in the apical part.
Keywords: apical zone, canal configuration, cone-beam computed tomography, isthmus, three-dimensional,
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Please cite this article as: Gyulbenkiyan E, Borisov R, Gusiyska A. Cone-beam computed tomography and light microscopic examination of human extracted molars — an in vitro study. J of IMAB. 2025 Oct-Dec;31(4):6537-6541. [Crossref - 10.5272/jimab.2025314.6537]
Correspondence to: Elvira Gyulbenkiyan, Department of Conservative Dentistry, Medical University – Sofia; 1, Georgi Sofiyski Blvd., Sofia, Bulgaria; E-mail: e.colova@fdm.mu-sofia.bg
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Received: 04 July 2025
Published online: 09 October 2025