Cone Beam Computer Tomography and Histological Evaluation of Dental Follicle of Impacted Lower Third Molar Germs in Teens : A Histo-Radiographic Correlation Study in a Case Series

The dental follicle (DF) is the tissue that surrounds the crown of the developing tooth. In X-ray, images it appears as a radiolucent area. The removal of an impacted mandibular third molar is a common procedure in oral surgery. The radiographic evidence of pathology, commonly defined as a pericoronal radiolucency measuring at least mm 2.5 mm in any dimension, is accepted for the extraction of impacted mandibular third molars. Mesioangular impactions are usually more closely placed to the inferior alveolar canal, and the use of cone beam computer tomography (CBCT) before the removal of impacted mandibular third molars has been reported to be appropriate in these cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the microscopic features of radiographically normal DFs associated with mesioangular impacted mandibular third molars examined through CBCT. Thirteen mesioangular impacted third molars from ten patients (5 males and 5 females, mean age +/- SD: 15.1 +/- 1.66) with a maximum width of the DF