Developmental Disturbances Of The Teeth, Anomalies Of Number

During normal tooth development, many complications can occur that result in the number of developing teeth. These conditions range from the absence of all teeth (anodontia) to having more teeth than the normal number of teeth (hyperdontia). Some may use the term agenesis, which is the failure of all or part of an organ to develop during embryonic growth when describing missing or absent teeth. While mild cases of dental agenesis may not even be noticed until later in life, some forms of dental agenesis can be devastating and debilitating, resulting in a poor quality of life.Agenesis of teeth often occurs as a part of a syndrome and ranges from the absence of a single tooth to the failure of all the teeth to develop. Milder cases of dental agenesis can typically be restored or addressed by relatively non-invasive measures. These conditions are classified based on the number of teeth involved and will be discussed throughout this article. The different classifications are anodontia, hypodontia, oligodontia, and hyperdontia.