For more than a century, conventional radiographs have been utilised to assess periapical disease and are still employed in many parts of the world. The application of digital radiography has made a tremendous and widespread impact on diagnostic practice nowadays. Aim of the study was to compare the diagnostic efficacy of conventional and digital imaging in the detection of simulated periapical lesions. Materials and methods: An in vitro comparative study of digital and conventional intraoral radiographs was conducted using human skull. A total of 5 defleshed cadaver skulls were used in the study in which periapical lesions were created mechanically. Both conventional and digital images were acquired, processed, viewed and assessed for the certainty of the presence or absence of the periapical lesions and the assessment of the scores were done. The results were evaluated using Lickert’s scale and finally the assigned scores were compared using Wilcoxon’s signed rank test. Results: The difference between conventional and Dexis digital radiographic methods was found to be statistically not significant, except in the case of mechanically induced periapical lesions created using 4 mm bur, where Digital system outperformed conventional radiography. Conclusions: Digital radiographic system is considered equivalent to conventional radiography and hence can be routinely used as an alternative to conventional film.

Keywords : Conventional radiography; digital radiography; in vitro comparative study; intra oral periapical radiograph.