Clinical Assessment & Presentations
Intra-oral Features
Asymmetric eruption
No eruption of a tooth for > 6 months compared to its contralateral tooth can be considered asymmetric and a sign of a missing permanent tooth. Eruption sequence is more important than eruption times. See permanent teeth eruption chart for reference.
Retained primary tooth
Primary teeth can be retained and/or ankylosed leading to infra-occlusion and tipping of the adjacent teeth. This may have significant influences on a developing malocclusion. Read about infra-occlusion teeth.
Microdontia / diminutive teeth
Hypodontia is associated with smaller teeth, known as microdontia (Brook 1984). Individual teeth can also be diminutive, such as a peg lateral. Microdontia in associated with the hypodontia often worsens the spacing issue present. The resulting malocclusion should be addressed as a spacing anomaly.
