Comparison of diagnostic effects of infrared imaging, visual inspection, and bitewing radiography in primary occlusal caries of permanent teeth

This study compared the diagnostic efficacy of VistaCam iX infrared camera, visual inspection, and bitewing‑radiographs for the detection of primary occlusal caries of permanent teeth.

In this in vitro experimental study, 80 extracted human premolars were evaluated. The occlusal surfaces of these teeth were demineralized by immersion in a demineralizing agent. Then, the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS II), bitewing‑radiography, and Proxi head of VistaCam iX were used to inspect them. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated for each diagnostic modality. Data were analyzed using SPSS. Twenty‑five at P < 0.05 level of significance with one‑way analysis of variance and Games–Howell test.

Bitewing‑radiography had significantly lower sensitivity than ICDAS II and VistaCam (P < 0.05). ICDAS II was comparable to VistaCam, with no significant difference in sensitivity (P > 0.05). ICDAS II had a significantly higher PPV than bitewing‑radiography and VistaCam (P < 0.05). The sensitivity of bitewing radiography was significantly lower than that of ICDAS II and VistaCam (P < 0.05). ICDAS II was comparable to that of VistaCam with no significant differences in sensitivity (P > 0.05). ICDAS II had a considerably higher PPV than bitewing‑radiography and VistaCam (P < 0.05). The NPV of ICDAS II visual inspection was significantly higher than that of bitewing‑radiography and VistaCam (P < 0.05). The ICDASS II and VistaCam had a repeatability coefficient of 47.4%. For bitewing‑radiography and VistaCam, this value was 44.2% and 83.4% for ICDAS II and bitewing‑radiography.

Visual inspection seems to be superior to bitewing‑radiography and VistaCam in detecting primary occlusal caries of permanent teeth.