Developmental abnormalities
Classification of developmental abnormalities
Developmental anomalies of the maxillofacial region are usually classified into:
Anomalies of the teeth
These include abnormalities in:
Abnormalities in structure
Abnormalities in shape
Anomalies affecting whole teeth
• Fusion – two teeth joined together from the fusion of adjacent tooth germs
• Gemination – two teeth joined together but arising from a single tooth germ
• Concrescence – two teeth joined together by cementum
• Dens-in-dente (invaginated odontome) – infolding of the outer surface of a tooth into the interior usually in the cingulum pit region of maxillary lateral incisors.
Anomalies affecting roots and/or pulp canals
• Number – additional roots, e.g. two-rooted incisors, three-rooted premolars or four-rooted molars
– Dilaceration – sharp bend in the root direction
– Taurodontism – short, stumpy roots and longitudinally enlarged pulp chambers
• Pulp stones – localized or associated with specific syndromes, e.g. Ehlers–Danlos (floppy joint syndrome)
Abnormalities in position
Other positional anomalies
• Transposition, two teeth occupying exchanged positions
• Wandering teeth, movement of unerupted teeth for no apparent reason (distal drift)
• Infraocclusion, second deciduous molars apparently descend into the jaws. These teeth in fact remain in their original position while the adjacent alveolar bone grows normally. As these teeth appear to submerge the original term for this positional anomaly was submersion.