Hyperdontia is an abnormal oral condition of having supernumerary teeth (i.e teeth that appear in addition to the regular number of teeth). What does this mean? Under normal circumstance, there are supposed to be 20 primary/milk teeth in young children (at least below the age of 12), and 32 permanent teeth in adults (21 years and above). In a situation where the milk teeth of a young child now exceeds 20 and the permanent teeth of an adult exceeds 32, the excess teeth are referred to as supernumerary teeth. These teeth are more common in permanent teeth than in primary teeth. The teeth can appear in any area of the dental arch and can affect any dental organ.
Supernumerary teeth are of different types, and therefore are classified by their shapes and also by their positions in the mouth. Based on their shapes, they are classified as follows: Supplemental (where the tooth has a normal shape for the teeth in that series); Tuberculate (also called barrel shaped); Conical (also called peg shaped); Compound odontoma (multiple small tooth-like forms); Complex odontoma (a disorganized mass of dental tissue). Based on their positions, supernumerary teeth are classified as either Mesiodens (in front of the incisors); Paramolar (beside the molar); or Distomolar (behind the third molar).
CAUSE
Hyperdontia does not have a clear-cut cause, but it is believed to be caused by a number of factors:
* It is suggested that supernumerary teeth develop from a second tooth bud arising from the dental lamina near the regular tooth bud or possibly from splitting the regular tooth bud itself. The dental lamina is a zone of cells that initiates the formation of the tooth germ, which forms the tooth.
* It is also believed that there may be a genetic factor in hyperdontia consisting of an autosomal dominant trait with low penetrance (only sometimes producing supernumerary teeth in a carrier of the mutated gene).
TREATMENT
Treatment mainly consists of removal of the teeth when possible. If the supernumerary teeth are left without being removed, the teeth can lead to the development of cysts or tumors, and some other clinical problems. Therefore, it is very important to detect, examine, and treat supernumerary teeth as soon as possible. The additional teeth will likely pose some harms on the affected individual; there will be some difficulties eating well, brushing, normal teeth growth may be hindered, and so on, and they can even affect the individuals overall facial outlook.
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