Radiographic Assessment of Nasopalatine Canal Using Cone Beam Computed Tomography

Purpose: To assess the morphology of nasopalatine canal and to determine the variation of this canal in correlations to age and gender in Iraqi sample using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). Materials and methods: A total of 200 requested CBCT images for nasopalatine canal evaluation before dental implantology at the anterior maxillary region. The morphology of canals was classified into 3 groups in coronal cross-sections. The effects of age and gender were also measured. Results: The study comprised 100 males and 100 females with mean age of 30.64 ± 9.46 years. Most of the cases showed Y-shape configuration type III 43.5% followed by type I single canal 35.5%, and type II with 2 parallel canals 21%, Conclusion: Due to the wide variation in the morphology of nasopalatine canals, it is highly recommended to perform CBCT evaluation to the anterior maxilla before dental implantology in order to prevent any damage to the neurovascular bundle.