Eur Endod J. 2017; 2(1): 25 | DOI: 10.5152/eej.2017.17024

Radiographic Assessment of the Prevalence of Pulp Stones in a Yemeni Population Sample

Mohamed Nader Kalaji¹, Adnan Asaad Habib², Mohamed Alwessabi^3
1Department of Endodontics, School of Dentistry, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
²Department of Restorative Dental Sciences AL-Farabi Colleges of Dentistry and Nursing, Saudi Arabia
³School of Dentistry, University of Sciences and Technology, Sana’a, Yemen

Objective: To determine the prevalence and distribution of pulp stones in the posterior teeth of a sample of adult Yemeni dental patients using digital panoramic radiographs.
Methods: In total, 913 panoramic radiographs from patients attending the hospital dental clinics of at Uni- versity of Sciences and Technology, Sana’a, Yemen, from January 2013 to December 2014 were examined. The occurrence of pulp stones in the posterior teeth of adult subjects was recorded. Associations between pulp stones and gender, age, arch, side and tooth type were studied.
Results: The overall prevalence of pulp stones was 18.6% for individuals (170 out of 913 subjects) and 3.99% for examined teeth (351 out of 8802 teeth). The pulp stone occurrence was significantly higher in the maxilla than in the mandible for each tooth type and location (P<0.001). Pulp stones occurred more often on the right side (P<0.001). First molars represented 71% of the affected teeth with the maxillary right first molar showing the highest occurrence. Fifty-six percent of the affected subjects had pulp stones in more than one tooth. No significant difference in the occurrence of pulp stones was detected between genders or among age groups (P>0.05).
Conclusion: The prevalence of pulp stones is different among populations. Pulp stones were found in approx- imately one-fifth of subjects in the Yemeni population, where up to 90% of the population have a Qat-chew- ing habit. This habit usually causes mechanical and chemical irritation and results in pulp calcification.

Keywords: Canal anatomy, diagnosis, imaging, panoramic radiographs, Prevalence, Pulp stones, Yemeni population

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