Thermography as a non-ionizing quantitative tool for diagnosing periapical inflammatory lesions

Abstract Background Thermography is a contemporary imaging modality based on acquiring and analyzing thermal data using non-contact devices. The aim of the present study was to assess the validity of thermography, compared with that of the reference-standard, for the diagnosis of periapical inflammatory lesions and to evaluate the temperature ranges for acute pulpitis with apical periodontitis (AAP), acute periapical abscess (AA) and chronic periapical abscess (CA). Methods AAP, AA and CA were diagnosed based on clinical and radiographic criteria. Thermographic data were acquired using the FLIR E-5 Infrared Camera. Extraoral thermal images were taken from the front and right and left sides of patients whose mouths were closed, and one intraoral thermal image was taken from the palatal perspective. Agreement in the diagnoses based on the combination of clinical and radiographic assessments and the thermographic evaluation was calculated. The temperature ranges of the three diagnostic subgroups were also measured. Results A total of 80 patients were enrolled in this study. The mean intraoral thermal image temperature for AA was 37.26 ± 0.36, that for CA was 35.03 ± 0.63 and that for AAP was 36.07 ± 0.45. The differences between the mean intraoral thermal temperatures of the three diagnostic groups were statistically significant (P