Intraoral Ultrasound Imaging of Tooth-periodontium Complex

Misaligned teeth are very common in the population and are commonly known as malocclusion. This happens when the upper teeth do not align properly with the lower teeth. It can lead to difficulty in jaw movement, chewing, speech, and gum disease. Correction of malocclusion requires orthodontic (braces) treatment. Currently, the imaging technique known as cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) has been routinely used in orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning for patients with malocclusion. Although CBCT provides better information than conventional dental X-rays, it typically delivers more harmful radiation to the patients. This is especially important as radiation from repeated X-ray imaging during dental monitoring visits can be cumulative. Ultrasound is commonly used in medical imaging. The ultrasound method is non-invasive, cost-effective, and free of ionizing radiation. The application of ultrasound has been investigated in many fields in Dentistry. We plan to evaluate the ability of intra-oral ultrasound to see the bone and gingiva around the tooth for patients under orthodontic treatment. If ultrasound is found to be a reliable tool in imaging the tooth-gum complex, children and adolescents will benefit immensely from the decreased radiation risks and reduced cancer rate.