Prevalence of Stafne's bone cavity--retrospective analysis of 14,005 panoramic views.
OBJECTIVE
Stafne's bone cavity (SBC) is a very rare defect, affecting only selected parts of the mandibular bone. Its etiology is unknown. On two-dimensional images, it appears as a narrowed cavity and might be interpreted as a space-occupying process inside the bone. The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of SBC on panoramic views, and compare these results to published reports.


METHODS
A total of 14,005 panoramic views were examined retrospectively with regard to the presence of SBC. All images were analyzed regarding typical characteristics as originally described by Stafne.


RESULTS
A total of 11 cases fulfilled diagnostic criteria of SBC (0.08%). All patients were men (100%), at a mean age of 58.1 years (range=38-75 years). Eight patients (72.7%) had SBC on the left side, three patients on the right side (27.3%). In eight cases, SBC was found in the mandibular corpus (72.7%), and in three cases in the mandibular angle (27.3%). Correlating with published results, SBC was found at a relative frequency of 0.13%.


CONCLUSIONS
SBC on panoramic views or other imaging modalities should alert the clinician to exclude other potential pathologies. In doubtful cases, surgical procedures might be necessary to verify the diagnosis.
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany a.assaf@uke.uni-hamburg.de.
Alexandre Th
AT
Assaf
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
Mehdi
M
Solaty
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
Tomislav A
TA
Zrnc
Department of Dento-Maxillofacial Radiology, University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
Andreas W
AW
Fuhrmann
Department of Orthodontics, University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
Hanna
H
Scheuer
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
Max
M
Heiland
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
Reinhard E
RE
Friedrich
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008336:Mandibular Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010014:Osteolysis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D015995:Prevalence; D011859:Radiography; D012189:Retrospective Studies
SBC; Stafne's bone cavity; panoramic view; prevalence