Cusp radius measurement through digital image analysis

Abstract

Objective. Dental anatomy has been extensively described in numerous textbooks. Nevertheless, there are very few details about the value of the cusp radius of posterior teeth. This in vitro study used a laser profilometer to scan the occlusal surfaces of 21 molar teeth. Materials and methods. The images were analysed with µScan software and the approximate radius of curvature was measured. Results. The values varied between 0.6–2.5 mm. The radius average value was 1.25 mm bucco-lingually and 1.61 mm mesio-distally. Conclusions. These findings might serve as a guide for different dental biomechanics studies and the conception, design and manufacturing of dental prosthetics.

Key Words::

• dental anatomy
• dental informatics
• morphometrics
• mathematical modeling

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the Contact Mechanics Laboratory from the University of Suceava. The research was financially supported by Romania CNCSIS-MECT through grant 757/2007–2008. By no means does this imply a conflict of interest.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.