title: Quantitative evaluation of sialograms.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The authors developed and evaluated a quantitative analytic method for interpreting clinical sialograms.
  
  
  METHODS
  Images were obtained by digital subtraction sialography and transformed into binary form. The duct width of the image was calculated and represented as a normalized histogram. The effects of the volume of contrast medium injected and of the inclination angle of the objects on the histogram were examined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In model studies, the normalized histogram was affected insignificantly by these factors. Clinical sialograms of 18 patients with normal results, 12 patients with parotitis, and 5 patients with Sjögren syndrome were preliminarily analyzed by the histogram method and four representative parameters of the histogram. Discriminant analysis showed a relatively high correct-predictive rate in the distinction between patients with normal and abnormal results.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This method reduces the effect of observer variation in diagnosing sialograms, and improves diagnostic accuracy for assessing the presence of inflammatory diseases of the parotid gland.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Radiology, Nagasaki University School of Dentistry, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshiura
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohki
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Araki
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yamada
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D008961:Models, Structural; D010306:Parotid Gland / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D010309:Parotitis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology; D012796:Sialography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012859:Sjogren's Syndrome / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology; D013382:Subtraction Technique / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data