prevalence of second mesiobuccal canal in maxillary canal in maxillary first molar by cone beam computed tomography in patients referred to radiology centers of urmia in 2011-2014

The aim of this in vivo study was to determine the prevalence of the second mesiobuccal canal in the maxillary first molars of patients wh6 referred to the radiology clinics in Urmia using cone beam computed tomography.
In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 167 CBCT images of the maxillary first molars (kVp=90, MA=12 and a voxel size = 0.2 mm FOV=9*13cm), which included maxillary anatomy, were evaluated by two expert observers (two radiologists). The images were evaluated at the axial plane reconstruction with 1 mm slice thickness and 1 mm interval from the pulp chamber floor of the tooth to 4-5 mm apical to the CEJ.
In the sample population, the prevalence of the maxillary first molar second mesiobuccal canal was estimated to be 9.88 %, 8.08% and 23.66% on the left, right, and both sides, respectively. Based on the independent t-test results, there was no significant association between the gender of the individuals or side of the teeth and prevalence of MB2.
Despite the limitations of the current study, it could be concluded that, roughly, 41 percent of the maxillary first molars have an MB2 canal. We found no significant correlation between the gender of the individuals or the side of the teeth and occurrence of MB2. In general, the mesiobuccal root of the maxillary first molars has more variations in canal anatomy in comparison to the distobuccal and buccal roots. Relatively high prevalence of MB2 canal increases the probability of endodontic failures. Therefore, using the noninvasive CBCT imaging may contribute significantly to the treatment of maxillary molars due to its high precision.