Correlations between skeletal maturity and dental calcification stages in Korean children

Authors:

ABSTRACT

Aim

To evaluate the relationship between dental calcification and skeletal maturity and to identify the tooth with the highest correlation with skeletal maturity index in Korean children.

Material and methods

For 447 children (205 boys and 242 girls) aged between 5 and 13 years, hand-wrist and lateral cephalometric radiographs were taken to assess skeletal maturity by Fishman’s skeletal maturity indicators (SMI) and Baccetti’s cervical vertebrae maturation (CVM) stages. Dental panoramic radiographs were taken to assess dental maturity of the permanent mandibular canine, first and second premolar, and second molar using the method devised by Dermirjian.

Results

Significant correlations of dental calcification stages with SMI and CVM were found in all teeth examined (all p <0.05). The strongest correlations were found for the first premolars in correlation analyses (r = 0.780 for SMI and 0.748 for CVM among boys; 0.812 for SMI and 0.725 for CVM among girls) and receiver operating characteristic curve analyses (area under the curve = 0,919–0,944 for SMI and 0.791–0.900 for CVM among boys; 0.923–0.928 for SMI and 0.820–0.886 for CVM among girls).

Conclusion

Dental calcification stages determined by panoramic radiographs can be clinically used as useful indices to predict skeletal maturity in Korean children.

PLUMX METRICS