Position of Impacted Maxillary Central Incisor Influencing Spontaneous Eruption and Timing

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the influence of the initial vertical position of impacted maxillary incisor on spontaneous eruption frequency and its timing after surgical removal of the supernumerary tooth. Material And Methods: 44 patients with unilateral impaction of maxillary permanent central incisor with an average age of 10.5 years were studied for spontaneous eruption of impacted tooth. Orthopantomograms were taken of every patient. The time (in months) of spontaneous eruption was registered as a time from surgical removal of the supernumerary tooth till visible emergence of impacted central incisor. Results: Statistically significant differences in the spontaneous eruption time were found between the groups with different initial vertical position of the impacted central maxillary incisor. The spontaneous eruption of impacted central incisors was registered in 30 (68%) cases after removal of the supernumerary tooth. On the average, time of spontaneous eruption for the study group was 10.9 months. Conclusion: Maxillary central incisor impacted at the projection level of the apical third of the contralateral completely erupted central maxillary incisor root, should be treated by the surgical-orthodontic approach, because spontaneous eruption is unlikely to expect.