Reliability and reproducibility of CBCT assessment of mandibular changes before and after treatment for Class III growing patients – an easy and quick way for evaluation

The objective of this study was to evaluate intraobserver reliability and inter-observer reproducibility of a 3-dimensional (3D) assessment method for mandibular changes of growing patients after orthodontic treatment for Class III malocclusion. Methods Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans were performed before and after orthodontic treatment for 27 patients. During the scan, the patient was positioned such that his/her mandibular plane was parallel to floor. Three observers independently worked on the DICOM data, reconstructed the pre- and post-treatment 3D models in software, selected the stable anatomical structures (basal bone area from the lingual surface of the symphysis to the distal aspect of the first molars) to guide the automated superimposition process. Then, each observer registered 14 anatomical landmarks on the virtual models, for three times after suitable interval, to generate 3 sets of coordinates; the mean was taken as the coordinates for that particular landmark. The intraobserver reliability and inter-observer reproducibility of the method were analyzed. Results The ICCs was > 0.90 for 25 (92.6%) of the intraobserver assessments. The precision of the measurement method was < 0.3 mm in 24 (88.9%) cases. The interobserver reproducibility errors were < 0.3 mm in 21 of the 27 cases. Conclusions The intraobserver reliability and inter-observer reproducibility of 3D assessment of mandibular changes using the virtual models were excellent.