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Samji, Zahra Bahadurali

University of British Columbia

Purpose: Taurodontism was thought to be associated mainly with oro-facial syndromes but studies in normal Chinese and Brazilian adult populations have shown that this trait is relatively common. We hypothesize that taurodontism is a variation of normal root morphology that may be present in an adolescent population as an incidental finding. Methods: Digital dental panoramic radiographs (DPRs) taken of 124 adolescents aged between 15 and 20 years old (male: female; 59:65), attending the University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Dentistry Clinic between July 2006 and June 2019 were examined. Unrestored first and second permanent molars with closed apices were measured digitally and a taurodont ratio index was obtained using the Shifman and Chanannel criteria. Results: The total number of teeth examined was 992 and the proportion of taurodont teeth was 16.6%. Of the 124 cases, 68 (54.8%) had at least one taurodont tooth. There were 43 cases with bilateral taurodont teeth. Taurodontism had a higher predilection for females (63.1%) as compared to males (45.8%). This difference was significant for all molars with a P value ranging from P = .003 to P = .043, where P < .05, except for the upper left second permanent molar (tooth #27) and the lower left second permanent molar (tooth #37). The extent of taurodontism was mostly mild. Conclusions: Our results suggest that mild taurodontism is relatively common in the local adolescent population similar to what was reported elsewhere. The ability to identify these teeth and diagnose them early can help inform treatment planning decisions.

Text

2021-07-26

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/79105

Craniofacial Science

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/