Genetics versus environment in the aetiology of malocclusion.

The ongoing debate regarding the relative contributions of heredity and environment to the aetiology of malocclusion would benefit from both a more careful interpretation of the evidence and the abandonment of the tendency to conflate under one umbrella term distinct clinical entities, which may in turn have different aetiologies. D. Normando's letter of 24 February 2012 ( 2012; 212: 153) raises some interesting and surprising points, which deserve attention and comment.