The aim of the present study was to evaluate the changes of alveolar bone in aged rats. The mandibles of the 4- month and 22-month aged rats were scanned by micro-CT. After the reconstruction of the alveolar bone,the distance between the cemen- to enamel junction (CEJ) and the alveolar bone crest (ABC) was measured. The micro architectures of the inter-radicular alveolar bone were analyzed. The 22-month rats experienced the reduction in alveolar crest height in the buccal side and the lingual side, and significant increase in alveolar bone loss compared with the 4-month rats. The 22-month rats had a porous microarchitecture, the trabecular arrangement was obviously dissociated with the expanded inter-bone spaces of marrow, and the bone histomorphometry analysis showed the decreased bone volume/tissue volume and trabecular thickness in the 22-month rats. These results suggest that alveolar bone loss and alveolar trabecular bone deterioration might contribute to the weakening of molar support in the elderly.
KEY WORDS: Alveolar bone loss; Mandible; Micro-CT; Bone histomorphometry.
ZHENG, Y. & HAN, N. Alveolar bone loss with microarchitecture changes in aged rat. Int. J. Morphol., 39(5):1443-1446, 2021.
