title: Implant image quality in dental radiographs recorded using a customized imaging guide or a standard film holder.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare a customized imaging guide and a standard film holder for obtaining optimally projected intraoral radiographs of dental implants.
  
  
  METHODS
  Intraoral radiographs of four screw-type implants with different inclination placed in an upper or lower dental phantom model were recorded by 32 groups of examiners after a short instruction in the use of the RB-RB/LB-LB mnemonic rule. Half of the examiners recorded the images using a standard film holder and the other half used a customized imaging guide. Each radiograph was assessed under blinded conditions with regard to rendering of the implant threads and was assigned to one of four quality categories: (1) perfect, (2) not perfect, but clinically acceptable, (3) not acceptable, and (4) hopeless.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For the upper jaw, the same number of exposures per implant were made to achieve an acceptable image (P=0.86) by the standard film holder method (median=2) and the imaging guide method (median=2). For the lower jaw, medians for the imaging guide method and the film holder method were 1 and 2, respectively (P=0.004). For the imaging guide method, the first exposure was rated as perfect/acceptable in 62% of the cases and for the film holder method in 41% of the cases (P=0.013). After ≤ 2 exposures, 78% (imaging guide method) and 69% (film holder method) of the implant images were perfect/acceptable (P=0.23). The implant inclination did not have a major influence on the outcomes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Perfect or acceptable images were achieved after two exposures with the same frequency either using a customized imaging guide method or a standard film holder method. However, the use of a customized imaging guide method was overall significantly superior to a standard film holder method in terms of obtaining perfect or acceptable images with only one exposure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Prosthetic Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark. lars.schropp@odontologi.au.dk
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schropp
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stavropoulos
authors.forename: Rubens
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Spin-Neto
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wenzel
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D015921:Dental Implants; D006801:Humans; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011861:Radiography, Dental / Q000295:instrumentation*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014962:X-Ray Film
chemical_list: D015921:Dental Implants