Comparison of imaging characteristics and margin of an ameloblastoma between cone beam computed tomography and computed tomography: A case report

Introduction: Ameloblastomas are rare, benign, odontogenic tumors that mainly affect the mandible. They are slow-growing tumors with an affinity for bone, and they have a high recurrence rate if not adequately removed. Tumor removal needs attention with regard to the assessment of the correct free tumor margin. Computed tomography (CT), as the gold standard, allows good assessment and contrast enhancement is helpful. Advancements in imaging technology have resulted in the development of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) as an alternative imaging approach. We present a patient with an ameloblastoma, who underwent both CT and CBCT. We compared the imaging characteristics and tumor margin between these imaging approaches in this patient. Case Report: The patient was a 34-year-old woman with swelling in the right lower jaw. She underwent both CT and CBCT. The lesion was identified as an ameloblastoma. We found that both approaches provided good image quality with regard to anatomy; however, there was a slight difference in measurement results. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that CBCT provides good image quality for surgical guidance with regard to measuring ameloblastomas and determining the free tumor margin and that CBCT results are as good as CT results in the assessment of ameloblastomas.