Abstract
Taking sufficient calcium in the pubescent period is very important as a preventive against osteoporosis, To our knowledge, there have been few reports about the effects of calcium intake on the bone by using the quantitative densitometry and morphological measurement. In our study, rats aged 8weeks, corresponding to adolescence in humans, were used. The effects of dietary therapy on mandibular osteoporosis produced by calcium deficiency were investigated, using computed X-ray densitometry and cephlometric radiography. The results were as follows.
1. Body weight
No significant differences were identified between the control and experimental groups.
2. Cephalometry
a. Coordinate analysis
The experimental groups exhibited significantly lower values than the control group in the coronoid process, condyle and mandibular angle (p<0.05).
b. Distance measurement
The experimental groups showed a significantly shorter condylar head and coronoid process than those of the control group (p<0.05).
c. Area measurement
The experimental groups showed significantly less area for the condyloid process than that of the control group (p<0.05).
3. Densitometry
No significant differences were found between the control and experimental groups in the bone density of the mandibular angle, condylar and coronoid processes.
From the foregoing results, dietary therapy showed a positive result for recovery of mandibular osteoporosis in pubescent rats measured by computed X-ray densitometry, but it had no significant effect on the recovery of bone morphology which was thought as a marker of bone mass based on cephalometric investigation.
