Evaluation of tooth size in patients with congenitally-missing teeth

Background and aims. Hypodontia is a common developmental abnormality of dentition. This study aimed to determine tooth width in patients affected with mild hypodontia and compare the results with a control group without tooth agenesis. Materials and methods. The orthodontic records of 25 patients with congenital missing of one or two teeth (hypodontia group), and 25 subjects with full dentition (control group) were selected. The greatest mesiodistal width of each tooth was measured on the study models by a digital caliper. Tooth width measurements were compared between the groups using a student t-test at p < 0.05 of significance. Results. Patients with hypodontia showed narrower teeth than the control subjects. The differences in tooth size between the two groups were statistically significant for the first and second premolars and first molar in the maxillary right and for the second premolar in the maxillary left quadrants (p < 0.05). In the lower arch, the first and second premolars and also first molar in both sides of hypodontia patients demonstrated significant reduction in tooth size compared to the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusion. These findings suggest that patients with mild hypodontia have narrower teeth than normal subjects especially in posterior segments, which may have clinical implications during the orthodontic treatment process.