Correlation between cervical vertebrae maturation and midpalatal suture fusion in patients aged between 10 and 20 years: A cross-sectional and 3D study

Objective: This study aimed to correlate the cervical vertebrae maturation (CVM) stages with the bone fusion stages of the midpalatal suture (MPS). Materials and methods: The sample consisted of 351 cone-beam computed tomographies (CBCTs) of patients divided into two groups: 10–15 years old and 16–20 years old. Both CVM and MPS stages were correlated using Spearman's correlation analysis. To assess the diagnostic performance of the CVM stages in identifying the bone fusion stages of the MPS, the likelihood ratio (LHR) test was applied. Results: In the whole sample, a low positive correlation was found between CVM and MPS bone fusion level (P < 0.001; Rho = 0.395). In the younger age group, the correlation was moderate in the male (P < 0.001; Rho = 0.616) and low in the female (P < 0.001; Rho = 0.394) patients. In the 16–20 years age group, there was no correlation between CVM and MPS fusion. A moderate increase in the probability of determining CS1 for stage A (38%) and CS2 for stage B (42.2%) of MPS ossification was found among the 10–15 year old female patients. Conclusion: A low and moderate positive correlation was found between CVM and MPS level of bone fusion in female and male patients respectively, but the diagnostic performance of the CVM stages in the identification of MPS bone fusion stages did not have a high correlation. Therefore, the CVM stages indicated no conclusive probability of determining the MPS bone fusion stage.