In vivo study of approximal caries depth on storage phosphor plate images compared with dental x-ray film.

The aim of this in vivo study was to compare approximal caries depth on storage phosphor plate images to conventional film. A Soredex Digora imaging plate was placed in a film bite-wing positioner behind a Kodak Ektaspeed Plus film package without lead foil. The effect of scattered radiation on film without lead foil with a storage phosphor plate at the back was studied in a separate in vitro experiment. Compared with film protected by lead foil, the film showed higher density, but comparable contrast. For the in vivo study, clinical bite-wing exposures were made with the setup described above, with exposure settings for Ektaspeed Plus film. A four-point scale was chosen for approximal caries depth: 0 = no caries; 1 = caries in enamel; 2 = caries reaching dentino-enamel junction; 3 = caries into dentin. The bite-wing film images were shown to a panel of four experts. Sixty surfaces were selected for observer performance, based on identical scorings of the experts consensus classification. Next, six dentists evaluated both film and storage phosphor plate images with the same four point scale. Analysis of variance revealed a significant observer and image modality effect without an interaction effect. In conclusion, caries depth on storage phosphor plate images was underestimated compared with film-based images.