From Baby Teeth to Adult Ones: Introduction

Very often a six-year-old kid is brought to dental office.  The parent asks a question: why a baby tooth (Figure: A) remains in place without mobility, whereas an adult one (1) has emerged in a wrong place.  Will this adult tooth remain in the wrong place permanently?

Before answering these questions, let us draw readers' attention to the fact that the permanent tooth is wider than the baby one (see Figure on the right).  Either the permanent one is born too behind the baby one, or baby jaw is too small to hold the permanent tooth.  Here is the answer.

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Xin Wei, DDS, PhD, MS 1st edition 10/30/2011, last revision 07/17/2016