Diagnostic Potential of Mandibular Second Premolar and its Relation to Physiological and Skeletal Maturity in Girls

Aims and objectives: 1). To estimate the association between mandibular second premolar calcification stages and cervical vertebrae maturation 2). To estimate relationship of dental maturation and sexual maturation in female subjects 3). To analyse discriminatory ability of premolar calcification in assessing subjects having potential growth. Materials and Methods: Panaromic radiographs and lateral cephalograms of 90 girls subjects (before menarche) were selected for the study. Mandibular second premolar calcification stage was estimated according to Demirjian index-DI and cervical vertebrae maturation index (CVMI) was estimated using Hassel and Farman index. Results: Highly significant statistical correlation(C= 0.603) was found between DI and CVMI stages in girls.CVMI-2 correlated with stage DI-E, CVMI-3 correlated with stage DI-F, CVMI-4 and 5 correlated with stage DI-G. Dental maturation preceeded sexual maturation and 7.8% of the sample population showed completion before attaining sexual or skeletal maturity. Conclusion: Mandibular second premolar can be used as a preliminary method of estimating skeletal maturity. Calcification stage DI–F of premolar corresponds to peak growth in females.However, completion of calcification may be misleading, therefore other diagnostic methods should be considered for confirming the growth status of an individual.