Standardized assessment of bone micromorphometry around teeth following orthodontic tooth movement

Abstract

Abstract Purpose Volumetric quantitative analyses of bone micromorphometry changes following orthodontic tooth movements are hardly standardizable. The present study aimed at validating and applying a novel microcomputed tomography (CT)-based approach that enables the segmentation of teeth and definition of a standardized volume of interest (VOI) around the roots to assess local bone micromorphometry. Methods The jaws of 3 untreated and 14 orthodontically treated mice (protraction of the upper right molar for 11 days with 0.5 N; untreated left upper molar) were scanned with a micro-CT. The first molars and the alveolar bone were segmented, and a standardized VOI was defined around the teeth. The bone volume per total volume (BV/TV) was assessed within the VOI, and BV/TV values were compared between contralateral sites in both untreated (method validation) and treated animals (method application). Results The intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.99 revealed high reliability of the method. In the untreated animals, Bland–Altman analysis confirmed comparable BV/TV fractions (mean difference: −1.93, critical difference: 1.91, Wilcoxon: p = 0.03). In the orthodontically treated animals, BV/TV values were significantly lower at the test compared to the control site (test: 33.23% ± 5.74%, control: 41.33% ± 4.91%, Wilcoxon: p < 0.001). Conclusion Within the limits of the study, the novel approach demonstrated the applicability to evaluate bone micromorphometry around teeth subjected to orthodontic treatment.