Abstract:

The Imaging methods are an integral part in diagnostics and follow up of the osteolytic changes in chronic inflammatory periapical lesions. The review examines the opportunities of the main imaging methods applied in everyday practice for visualizing these changes – intraoral radiographs, panoramic tomography, and cone beam computed tomography.  Their advantages and disadvantages in the diagnostic process are discussed. Due to the availability of different imaging methods for diagnosing the changes in the periapical region and the associated with them  specific features, including differences in the received dose, finding the appropriate one, and minimizing the dose is a challenge.

It can be overcome only if the advantages and disadvantages of the imaging methods are well known.

Keywords: intraoral radiographs; panoramic tomography; cone beam computed tomography (CBCT); apical granuloma; radicular cysts.