Natal and Neonatal Teeth

Resident’s Name: Brian Schmid Date: 3/19/09
Article title: Natal and Neonatal Teeth
Author(s): Jianfu Zhu DDS, MS DSc & David King DDS PhD
Journal: Journal of Dentistry for Children
Volume (number):
Month, Year: March/April1995
Major topic: Characteristics of natal and neonatal teeth
Minor topic(s): None
Type of Article: Article Review
Overview of method of research: Reading articles and then writing down the important bits of what they read.
Findings: There has been a lot of research pertaining to natal and neonatal teeth, much of it inconsistent: the prevalence has been clocked at between 1 in 11.25 to 1 in 30,000 births; occurs in pairs 38-76% of the time; 1-10% are supernumerary; 85% are mandibular incisors, 11% maxillary incisors, 3% mandibular molars and canines and 1% maxillary molars and canines (only 20 reported cases). The etiology behind the early eruption has been linked to a superficial position of the tooth germ, which can be partially explained by hereditary factors. Several studies have tried making a definitive hereditary link for natal teeth, but none has been totally conclusive and are limited mainly to case reports. The most successful hereditary link has been via a variety of syndromes including: cleft lip/palate, adrenogenital syndrome, chondroectodermal dysplasia, oculomandibulodysencephaly, Pfeiffer Syndrome, Pierre Robin Syndrome and Van der Woude Syndrome. There was also a link found between natal teeth and exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls. In terms of treatment, they suggest extraction of shell-like or developed crowns with little to no attachment to the alveolus especially with a mobility of 2+ mm. Natal teeth typically have at least minimally affected enamel and dentin and often discolor soon after eruption into the oral cavity. Presence of natal teeth can lead to difficulty suckling, Riga Fede, pain to the mother and may pose an aspiration risk although it has never been documented in the literature. Management: if they are not causing trouble to the baby or mother; you can leave them, Riga Fede is not strong enough of a reason to extract (simply file the sharp edges); if you do extract, curette the socket to prevent further development of dental papilla; space loss is usually not an issue for incisors, but if it is a natal molar, space management will have to be addressed eventually.
Key points/Summary: Don’t jump immediately to extraction, consider all the factors and manage properly.
Assessment of article: Strong article with a lot of interested viewpoints.