Acquired Malocclusion

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Acquired Malocclusion

• By Maha Mohsin

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What Is Malocclusion

• It is the misalignment of teeth or the incorrect
  relationship between the upper and lower
  dentition that results in crowding, crooked or
  protruding teeth

Crowding Burke,M W 1998
Open Bite Burke,M W 1998
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Causes of Acquired Malocclusion

• Thumb Sucking
• Tongue Thrusting
• Dental Disease and Premature Tooth loss
• Obstructions
• Trauma

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Thumb Sucking

• Babies develop a natural habit of pacifying
  whilst in the womb
• It has been found ( Labbock 1987) that short
  duration of breastfeeding may increase the
  chances of prolonged thumb sucking

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The anterior teeth are pushed forward by the
excessive forces applied by the thumb. As the
tissue is soft, the teeth are allowed to
re-adjust themselves into a new position. Once
this occurs in the primary dentition, the
secondary dentition are left to erupt in the
incorrect spaces. This leads to a lack of
centric occlusion. The force overtime,
pushes the upper dentition forward and Allows the
posterior teeth to drift forward. This forms an
increase in overjet and causes the teeth to
flare out
Palmer, B 2002
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Tongue Thrusting

• Learning to chew and swallow food correctly is
  done at a young age
• To begin, a baby may thrust their tongue forward
  and in between their gums
• Over time this is corrected and the tongue is
  pulled back and up to the palate to allow the
  food bolus to be swallowed
• However, some children do not develop this and
  tongue thrusting may continue. This opens the
  bite and re-aligns the teeth into incorrect
  positions.

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Dental Disease and Premature Tooth Loss

• A poor diet with a frequent intake of sugary
  foods can lead to decay and premature loss of
  teeth.
• The image shows baby bottle tooth decay that
  results in early tooth loss

British Columbia Dental Hygienists Association
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Severe decay in deciduous teeth may result into
premature loss. This leaves an edentulous space
which may cause posterior teeth to drift
mesially. This causes tilting that can affect
occlusion by the presences of premature
contacts The antagonistic tooth to the
edentulous space can also grow further. This also
allows premature contacting in the mouth which
causes malocclusion
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Obstructions

• Mouth breathing, caused by nasal obstructions or
  enlarged adenoids can cause malocclusion.
• Excessive forces are applied to the muscles
  surrounding the mouth.
• The mouth is opened excessively and the jaw
  relationship is increased.

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Trauma

• Dental trauma in primary dentition can alter the
  alignment of teeth.
• This can have severe effects on the permanent
  teeth, by erupting in the incorrect position or
  angle.
• Although rare, ankylosis, can lead to premature
  contacts as the tooth fails grow fully out of the
  bone.

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Ankylosis
If ankylosis occurs in a primary tooth, the
root does not resorb and the permanent tooth is
unable to erupt in the correct position
Here, the tooth is unable to grow fully and
resides in the bone and not the connective tissue
Bien, Shirley H (n.d)
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References
  Bien, Shirley H (n.d) Dental Education Center
Dental Conditions Ankylosis Internet Available
from http//www.shirleyhbiendmd.com/pat/viewarticl
e.php?article_id1223 Last accessed Sunday 3rd
December 2006

Burke, M W (1998) Temucula Valley
Orthodontist-Open Bite Internet Available from
http//www.temelink.com/mwbortho/services.htm
Last accessed Wednesday 6th December 2006
  Labbok, M et al (1987) Does breastfeeding
protect against Malocclusion? Am J Prev
Med3(4)227-32
 
Palmer, B (2002) The importance of breastfeeding
as it relates to total health Internet
Available from http//www.brianpalmerdds.com/pdf/
section_B.pdf Last accessed Tuesday 5th
December 2006