Case Report
Oral Surgery
The supernumerary nasal tooth

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijom.2009.06.013Get rights and content

Abstract

Teeth exceeding the normal dental complement that have erupted into the nasal cavity are a rare pathological entity. This case report describes a female patient with recurrent complaints and fetid discharge from the left nasal cavity. The suspected clinical diagnosis of a supernumerary nasal tooth was confirmed by computed tomography. After endoscopic removal, the tooth was examined using X-ray microtomography and thin-section preparations; these findings are presented for the first time. A literature search identified 25 supernumerary nasal teeth in 23 patients.

Section snippets

Clinical case

A 49-year-old female Caucasian patient presented with recurrent complaints involving the left nasal cavity and suffering from a foul smelling discharge that had been unresponsive to medical treatment for the last 5 years. Her history excluded trauma or surgery and her family history contributed no useful information. The front teeth of the maxilla were clinically and radiographically normal. A panorama X-ray provided no clear details in the area of the nasal cavities.

Endoscopic inspection of

Review of the literature

A survey of the literature covering the period from 1 January 1959 to 1 January 2008 was conducted by two independent examiners focusing on SNTs. Owing to the relatively low specificity of the first-stage search strategy (Table 1) 1673 articles published in English were identified in PubMed (National Library of Medicine) and EMBASE (Ovid). The final selection comprised 25 well-documented cases of SNTs in 23 humans (Table 2). 20 cases reported one tooth, and in 2 cases there were two teeth. The

Discussion

SNT is a rare condition and the literature is restricted to case reports and case series only. Most SNTs are diagnosed in the third decade of life. The prevalence in the general population is unknown and the exact eruption time cannot be specified as SNTs may remain undiagnosed if they are asymptomatic in an arrested or subclinical state.

Regarding the origin of SNT, the frequently cited classical atavism theory3, which assumes the existence of a third dental lamina in the area of the front teeth

Disclaimer

The authors assert that they have no financial interest in any company or any of the products mentioned in this article.

Competing interests

The authors assert that they have no financial interest in any company or any of the products mentioned in this article.

Funding

The study was completely financed by department funding.

Ethical approval

Not required.

Acknowledgement

We thank Ms Eugenia Lamont for her valuable editorial assistance.

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