PREVALENCE OF DEVELOPMENTAL ROOT ANOMALIES IN AN INDIAN POPULATION

Dental Research

Introduction :Root anomalies such as labiogingival or palatogingival grooves as well as cervical enamel projections and enamel pearls may predispose teeth to periodontal disease as they are plaque retentive and difficult to instrument. Labiogingival and palatogingival grooves develop as a result of an infolding of the Hertwig's epithelial root sheath(HERS) in maxillary incisors while cervical enamel projections and enamel pearls are extensions of enamel found on the root surface predominantly in the furcation area of molars. These defects harbour plaque and lack of periodontal attachment predisposing the tooth to pulpitis or periodontal disease. Aim:To determine the prevalence of developmental root anomalies in extracted permanent incisors and molars. Materials and methods: 200 extracted human teeth comprising of central incisors(n=20), lateral incisors(n=20) and molars(n=160)observe the following anomalies : Labiogingival groove , Palatogingival groove, cervical enamel projection and enamel pearl using a pair of magnification loupes (2.5x). Labiogingival groove were investigated from labial ascept of central incisors. Palatogingival groove were investigated from palatal ascept of central incisors. Enamel pearls were observed for all the sample teeth while the cervical enamel projection were observed for the maxillary and mandibular molars. Results: It was observed that there was no prevalence of labiogingival groove which may be attributed to variation among races. Palatogingival groove were found mostly in mid palatal region of central(1%) and lateral incisors.(1%). Cervical enamel projection were present in both maxillary and mandibular molars.Most probably present in buccal ascept of mandibular molars (3%).Teeth with grade 1 CEP were found frequently on buccal ascept of both maxillary(2.5%) and mandibular(3%) molars . Conclusion: The present study concludes that palatogingival groove were present with prevalence about 1% and cervical enamel projection were present on the buccal ascept of maxillary and mandibular molars(1.75%) when compared with other two anomalies.

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