A new classification of the sagittal root positioning of the mandibular anterior teeth in relation to their anterior buccal bone using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT)

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to develop a classification for the sagittal root positioning (SRP) of mandibular anterior teeth in terms of their anterior buccal bone for use before placing immediate implants. METHODS: A retrospective review of CBCT images was conducted on 150 patients (75 males and 75 females; mean age: 47.5 years) who met the inclusion criteria. The root position of the tooth samples was classified as buccal, middle, or lingual types according to their respective sagittal position and subtypes a, b, c, or d, according to the morphology of their osseous housing. RESULTS: The frequencies of the root positions of each classified group of the sample teeth were as follows: 14% buccal type, 77% middle type, and 8% lingual type; 18.0% subtype a, 4.33% subtype b, 75.55% subtype c, and 2.11% subtype d. As a complementary procedure for data collection, the sagittal position of the apex was classified into Class I (buccally angulated apex: 4.6%), Class II (apex with no angulation: 78.2%), Class III (lingually angulated apex: 0.7%) and Class IV (exposed root: 16.3%). In addition, the results of the examination of the buccal undercut showed that in 1.6%, 32.0%, and 66.3% of the sample teeth, the undercut was located coronally, medially, and apically, respectively. CONCLUSION: Considering these results, the newly proposed SRP classification system can be used to study the mandibular anterior buccal bone morphology as a diagnostic tool for immediate implant treatment.