151751-Najiba-Chargi

58 CHAPTER 4 Figure 2. Assessment of the Masseter volume. Maximum thickness of the masseter was determined using the measuring-tool included in Intellispace (mm). HUROI was determined in a 1-centimeter diameter circle on the same level as Masseter CSA. Since the state of a patient’s teeth may impact masseter function and size each patient was examined for the presence of dental elements. 22 Dental status was scored as follows: (0) no missing dentition, (1) one or more missing teeth, (2) total absence of dentition. Presence of scattering cause by (dental) implants was scored as follows: (0) no scattering present, (1) slight scattering present, (2) significant scattering present. Measurements were performed bilaterally for each patient and an average was calculated and used for further analysis. Earlier research has shown that there is excellent agreement between image scoring software programs used for measuring CSA. 23 Therefore, we found it acceptable to use the two programs independently and compare the data.