Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com Introduction In the field of measurable humanities and criminological dentistry, recognizing males from females by investigating the morphological attributes of bone is significant in the fields of physical and scientific human sciences. Gender can be determined by numerous pieces of the skeleton. Mandible is one of them. Mandible structure is the lower jaw of the facial skeleton which holds the lower teeth set up. 1,2 It is stronger and durable structure for gender determination dueto the presence of dens layer of compacted bone. 3 Moreover, forensic anthropologists and dentist generally utilizes morphological highlights of the mandible for gender assurance. 4 There are numerous parameters of mandible that can be utilized for gender assurance of obscure skeleton. One of the mandibular components that can demonstrate supportive for gender assurance is mental foramen. The mental foramen appears beneath the first and second premolar roots in adults (Figure 1). In the newborn, it is found in the lower border of the mandible. During aging, the mental foramen migrates to the mid-zone between the superior and inferior borders of the mandible. 5 In old age, it is usually appearing near the superior border of the mandible. In a panoramic radiograph, the mental foramen can be easily identified by dentists. Methods and materials A retrospective study was performed on 400 panoramic radiographs which were collected for diagnostic, periodontal, surgical, or orthodontic purposes from department of oral diagnosis, medicine and radiology in college of dentistry in Qassim University. Single radiograph machine was used in this study (Soredex cranex x ray machine). The x-ray machine properties were (tube potential 70 kV, tube current 10 Ma with exposure time 17.6 seconds). Figure 1 An image illustrating the position of the mental foramen beneath the frst and second premolars In this study, the dental intern, who made the measurement, marked 8 landmarks in 10 panoramic radiographs, 5 panoramic radiographs from each gender which were selected randomly to assess the repeatability of examiner (4 marks in each side of panoramic radiograph). A month later, the same dental intern repeated same landmarks and measurement for the same 10 panoramic radiographs. Using the G-reliability coefcient, it was found a good repeatability (G = 0.98). J Dent Health Oral Disord Ther. 2022;13(3):69‒72. 69 ©2022 Almutairi et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and build upon your work non-commercially. Mental foramen as an indicator of patient’s gender, panoramic study in Qassim province, Saudi Arabia Volume 13 Issue 3 - 2022 Masad Almutairi, 1 Ghaida Ali Alsuliaman, 2 Eman Abdulbaset Alnamnakani, 3 Ahmed Ali Alfawzan, 4 Abdullah Mohammad Aldayel 5 1 General Dental Practitioner, Qassim, KSA 2 BDS, University of Hail, Hail, KSA 3 Consultant Orthodontist, Prince Sultan Military Medical City, KSA 4 Department of Preventive Dentistry, College of Dentistry in Ar Rass, Qassim University, KSA 5 Consultant Orthodontic, King Saudi University, KSUMC, KSA Correspondence: Abdullah Mohammad Aldayel, Consultant Orthodontic, King Saudi University, KSUMC, Riyadh, KSA, Email Received: August 26, 2022 | Published: September 13, 2022 Abstract Introduction: Gender can be determined by numerous pieces of the skeleton structure. Mental foramen is one of the mandibular components that can demonstrate the gender. Aim of the study: to assess patient’s gender by analysis of mental foramen on panoramic radiograph in Qassim region. Method and material: A retrospective study was performed on 400 panoramic radiographs. 200 males and 200 females were included in this study. Panoramic radiograph machine was used in this study is (Soredex-cranex x- ray machine). Several lines measured in this study related to the mental foramen: 1-The distance from the alveolar crest of the mandible to the superior margin of mental foramen 2-The distance from the superior margin of mental foramen to lower border of the mandible 3-The distance from inferior margin of mental foramen to lower border of mandible. 4-The distance from inferior margin of mental foramen to alveolar crest of the mandible. Statistical analysis of the obtained data was carried out using Statistical Package for Social the Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0. Chi-square test was applied to find the significant value and P ≤ 0.05 was considered as a significant value. Result: The average mean values in males were higher compared to females. When comparing right and left sides of the same individual, the values were similar in both groups except the distance from inferior margin of mental foramen to lower border of mandible in females left side which was higher than right side. Conclusion: Based on the data collected in this study, an increased value was seen for males on all parameters related to the mental foramen when compared to females. Whereas the mean value of right and left sides of the same individuals were similar related to the two groups. The distance from inferior margin of mental foramen to lower border of the mandible showed a significant diference among females in Qassim province, Saudi Arabia. Keywords: mental foramen, mandible, mental nerve, sex determination, panoramic study Journal of Dental Health, Oral Disorders & Terapy Research Article Open Access