# Assessment to determine the accuracy of Chaillet and Demirjian method of dental age estimation using Orthopantomographs, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia

## TL;DR

This study evaluates the accuracy of a dental age estimation method in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province and finds it reliable for the local population.

## Contribution

The study validates the Demirjian 8-teeth method with Chaillet and Demirjian equations for age estimation in a Saudi population.

## Key findings

- The method showed significant differences between chronological and estimated mean ages (p<0.001).
- 31.6% of participants had age differences of ±1 year, and 37.8% had differences of more than 2 years.
- The method is supported for use in the Saudi population of the Eastern Province.

## Abstract

The approach to estimating mandibular age has been widely used, although it has shown age estimation disparities in diverse populations, including Indians.

Our goal was to test the Demirjian 8-teeth approach utilizing orthopantomogram to estimate age reliably after incorporating the third molar. We also used Chaillet and Demirjian’s regression equations to estimate age estimation accuracy in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.

The retrospective study included 196 people. Individuals were 8–24 years old. The left mandibular teeth were staged using an orthopantomographs utilizing the Demirjian 8-teeth approach. The Chaillet and Demirjian’s regression models determined dental age, and statistical methods compared dental age to chronological age.

The gender breakdown was 49.5% male and 50.5% female. Gender did not significantly affect chronological mean age or estimated mean age (13.39±3.77 vs. 13.10±3.51, p = 0.583; 11.75±2.92 vs. 11.58±2.70, p = 0.674). Statistically substantial differences in chronological and estimated mean ages between male and female individuals (p<0.001). Out of the total participants, 31.6% had a difference in age of ±1 year, 30.6% had a difference of 1-2 years, and 37.8% had a difference of more than 2 years. Compared to chronological and estimated ages, these variations in age between males and females were not statistically significant (p=0.557).

The findings of this study support the use of Demirjian’s 8-teeth approach in the Saudi population residing in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, employing Chaillet and Demirjian’s regression equations.