A bitewing radiograph shows a fuzzy radiolucent band at the cervical (CEJ) region of posterior teeth, bounded above and below by more radiopaque enamel/root. This represents:

Correct answer: A. Cervical burnout

• A. Correct. Cervical burnout is a radiographic optical illusion — a radiolucent band at the cervical region between enamel and the alveolar crest caused by differing densities/X-ray penetration. It is normal, has diffuse margins, and follows the CEJ contour.
• B. Caries appears as a more defined radiolucency, typically below the contact point, and does not run as a uniform band along the entire cervical region.
• C. Internal resorption is an intracoronal/intraradicular ballooning radiolucency, not a cervical band.
• D. Hypercementosis is excess radiopaque cementum on the root, not a radiolucency.