Impacted Teeth: An Interdisciplinary Perspective

A tooth normally erupts when half to three-quarters of its final root length has developed. Tooth impaction is usually diagnosed well after this period and is generally asymptomatic. It is principally for this reason that patients seek treatment later than optimal. Tooth impaction is a common problem in daily orthodontic practice and, in most cases, it is recognized by chance in a routine dental examination. Therefore, it is very important that dental practitioners are aware of this condition, since early detection and intervention may help to prevent many harmful complications. The treatment of impacted teeth requires multidisciplinary cooperation between orthodontists, oral surgeons and sometimes periodontists. Orthodontic treatment and surgical exposure of impacted teeth are performed in order to bring the impacted tooth into the line of the arch. The treatment is long, more complicated and challenging. This article presents an overview of the prevalence, etiology, diagnosis, treatment and complications associated with the management of impacted teeth.