The rise and fall of the alveolar process: Dependency of teeth and metabolic aspects.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review without systematic search or primary data synthesis
PubMed 30292055 · doi:10.1016/j.archoralbio.2018.09.016
What was done
This narrative review describes the physiological mechanisms of the alveolar process, focusing on its development and resorption in relation to tooth presence, metabolic turnover differences between the mandible and maxilla, and how mandibular trabecular patterns reflect systemic bone mineral density.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical data or statistical effect sizes. It describes qualitatively that mandibular alveolar bone turnover is the fastest in the skeleton and twice that of the maxilla. Dense trabeculation on mandibular premolar periapical radiographs indicates normal skeletal bone mineral density and low fracture risk, whereas sparse trabeculation indicates osteopenia and high fracture risk. It also hypothesizes that this high turnover rate may contribute to the localization of osteonecrosis of the jaw.
Why it matters
It highlights the potential for routine mandibular periapical radiographs to serve as an opportunistic screening indicator for systemic osteopenia and skeletal fracture risk.
Limits
This is a narrative review presenting mechanistic descriptions rather than empirical experimental or diagnostic test data. The abstract provides no sample sizes, search methodology, or diagnostic accuracy metrics such as sensitivity and specificity.
Cited by
- context The jawbone does not grow if teeth are not present.