Tooth size in dentitions with buccal canine ectopia

Abstracts on this page have been chosen and edited by Dr Trevor Watts

Abstract

There appear to be gender differences in tooth size in these patients.

Main

Chaushu S, Sharabi S et al. Eur J Orthod 2003; 25: 485–491

Crowding is found more frequently with buccally (BDC) than with palatally (PDC) displaced canine teeth. In some studies, PDC has been associated with smaller tooth size. In 3 Israeli orthodontic practices, 41 consecutive subjects with BDC and 58 with PDC were compared with 40 matched normal controls.

In female subjects with BDC, teeth were larger than in controls; in males they were normal. BDC tooth size was larger than PDC; in BDC females this was due to larger maxillary incisors and first molars, but in PDC males, to smaller teeth. Bilaterally-affected BDC females tended to have larger lateral incisors than unilaterally-affected females. The authors note the gender differences, and suggest that males and females should be considered separately in such studies.