ASSESSMENT OF TRABECULAR CHANGES IN FURCATION INVOLVEMENT USING FRACTAL ANALYSIS

Year 2025, Volume: 49 Issue: 1, 2 - 10, 24.04.2025

Buket Acar , Nagihan Koç , Nermin Tarhan

Abstract

Background and Aim: To evaluate the potential impact of the
presence and extent of furcation involvement (FI) on trabecular
bone changes, both on digital orthopantomography (OPG) and
cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images, using fractal
analysis.
Materials and Methods: In the present study, a total of 51
mandibular molars, of which 28 were determined as degree
I FI (FI-I), and 23 were determined as degree II FI (FI-II) were
included, while 43 mandibular molars without any evidence
of FI (non-FI) served as the control group. Fractal dimensions
(FD) were calculated using digital panoramic and CBCT images
with Image J software. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC)
analysis was used to compare the FD-FI diagnostic capacity of
OPG and CBCT images.
Results: The FD values of digital panoramic and CBCT images
were significantly higher in the control group than in the FI-I
and FI-II groups (p<0.05). Also, the FD calculated on digital
panoramic radiographs was markedly higher than the FDs of
CBCT in all groups (p<0.05). The area under ROC curves for
differentiating FI-I from the non-FI group were 0.752 and
0.828, and to diagnose FI-II were 0.877 and 0.902 for OPG_FD
and CBCT_FD, respectively.
Conclusion: As fractal analysis has the potential to determine
the presence, extent, and severity of FI in both panoramic and
CBCT images, it can serve as a measure for a thorough analysis
of cases with FI. When FI is considered a vital complexity factor
in periodontal diseases/conditions, the benefit of reliable
measures

Keywords

CBCT, Diagnostic Imaging, Fractals, Furcation Involvement, Periodontitis

Ethical Statement

The present study was approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee (GO 22/899).

Supporting Institution

This research received no specific grant from public, commercial, or not-for-profit funding agencies.

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