Multiple bilateral impactions in an adolescent girl.

This article describes a patient whose permanent canines and premolars had not erupted at age 14 years, although their root formation was complete, with closed apices. Surgical and orthodontic treatment was planned to correct the multiple impactions. The orthodontic traction used 5 strategic teeth and allowed for the eruption of all 12 impacted teeth. The surgical-orthodontic treatment of many impacted teeth yielded good esthetic and periodontal results, as shown by the patient's satisfaction and the periodontal probing 2 years after the treatment. Multiple impacted teeth are a rare eruption disturbance that requires early detection: no signs of a genetic syndrome or an endocrine disorder had been found, or failure to move along the eruption path, which is a characteristic of another syndrome, primary failure of eruption. Copyright 2010 American Association of Orthodontists. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.