Recommendation of panoramic radiography as a standard diagnostic tool for the head and neck region for the third molar cases: presentation of two distomolar cases

BackgroundOn many occasions general dentists see patients that require removal of third molars. Whether symptomatic or not, a panoramic X-ray should be taken on these patients for final diagnosis.Case descriptionThis paper presents two clinical cases where the patients presented for routine care. Both of these patients were diagnosed incidentally with supernumerary third molars. Thorough diagnosis was possible only when a panoramic X-ray was taken in addition to the regular full set of X-rays. A complete radiographic evaluation helped in taking the best course of action in these cases. Therefore, panoramic X-ray should be the X-ray of choice for the third molar cases.Clinical implicationsThe radiographic findings were strikingly different from what was seen clinically. Panoramic X-rays reveal a significant amount of information compared to a regular full set of X-rays.