A Review of Supernumerary Teeth in the Premolar Region

Abstract

Supernumerary teeth in the premolar region, unlike other supernumeraries, occur more often in the mandible where they are generally of the supplemental type. Occasionally, they are conical or smaller than normal, particularly in the upper premolar regions. They might occur singly or in multiples, be erupted or impacted, but the majority have been found to be unerupted and asymptomatic. The prevalence of supernumerary teeth in the premolar region has been demonstrated to be between 0.01 and 1 percent depending on the population studied. Interestingly, populations from the East or Africa are known to be the most affected. Various theories have been suggested to explain the etiology of supernumerary teeth in general including both genetic and environmental factors. Furthermore, it has been suggested that supernumerary premolar teeth belong to a third (postpermanent) series, developing from extensions of the dental lamina. Several consequences can result from the presence of supernumerary premolars, especially in the mandible, such as cyst formation, transposition, and other clinical scenarios.

Late development of multiple supernumerary teeth in a patient with hypodontia

“…Orthodontists may diagnose late-developing supernumerary teeth more often as panoramic radiographs are taken periodically during orthodontic treatment [7]. However, the supernumerary crypt and early stage of mineralization can be easily overlooked due to the lingual position relative to the normal premolar roots.…”

“…However, the supernumerary crypt and early stage of mineralization can be easily overlooked due to the lingual position relative to the normal premolar roots. Moreover, supernumerary premolars may interfere with orthodontic space closure and affect the stability of ortho dontic treatment [7,10,15].…”

“…While single supernumerary tooth usually occur in isolation, multiple supernumerary teeth are typically associated with a congenital syndrome or a cleft palate. In non-syndromic patients, multiple supernumerary teeth usually have been found in the mandibular premolar area [4,7,13].…”

“…Late-developing supernumeraries are those extra teeth that form after normal corresponding teeth of the same region have completed their root formation [7]. In a several reports of late-developing supernumerary teeth, they were mostly found in the mandibular premolar region [2,5,6,9,11,14,17].…”

Intervention for Multiple Supernumerary Premolars in a Teenager: Case Report

“…Recently, the term "third dentition" has been proposed to describe supernumerary teeth that develop and appear after the completion of the usual configuration of 32 permanent teeth, representing a dental anomaly of number in the human species (1)(2)(3). Although this clinical phenomenon is relatively frequent in the global population (with an estimated prevalence between 1.5 and 3.8% in permanent dentition), the exact etiology of this anomaly remains unknown (2,4,5).…”