Assessment of mineralization and developmental stage of homologues mandibular first and second molars using panoramic radiographs and Demirjian's method in 5 to 12 years old children

Assessment of dental developmental stage is more valuable than tooth eruption because the duration of tooth eruption is short and is determined by the appearance of tooth in the oral cavity. Among the different methods that could be used to determine the developmental stage of teeth, the Demirjian’s method has been extensively applied.

This retrospective study selected 300 panoramic radiographs of 5 to 12-year-old Iranians obtained from Radiology Department of Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences from 2019 to 2020. The developmental stage of homologous mandibular first and second molars teeth were scored based on Demirjian’s stages.

Significant difference was noted in developmental stage of first and second molars in right and left side among different age groups. According to the results, there was not a significant difference in developmental stage of first molars in right and left side between two genders while the difference in this regard between the mandibular right and left second molars between two genders was significant. Moreover, there was a significant difference in development of molars between four distributed age groups for each gender.

According to the findings of this study, evolution of mandibular first and second molar is not an appropriate indicator for gender segregation in children under 12 years old, but it can be used in ages estimation. Therefore, it can be concluded that gender is an impactful factor on the growth process of the second molar on the left and right in this age group.