Impacted Canine Teeth
Orthodontist Fairfield, OH
 Your canine teeth, particularly the maxillary canines (upper eye teeth or maxillary cuspids), play a crucial role in your mouth. They are essential for biting and tearing food as well as guiding your jaw into proper alignment. Impacted canine teeth are those that cannot properly erupt. The upper canines are the second most common teeth to become impacted, following your wisdom teeth.
When the wisdom teeth (third molars) are impacted, the most common solution is to extract them. These teeth do not perform any critical tasks, and can therefore be extracted without any harm to the rest of your mouth. In fact, extracting impacted wisdom teeth often improves your oral health. Canines, on the other hand, are extremely important. Nelson R. Diers Orthodontics, we can help to expose impacted canines, and bring them into proper alignment to perform their essential functions.
Just How Important are Canines?
While wisdom teeth do not play a vital role in your mouth; your maxillary canines serve numerous important functions: | • |
Maxillary canines are essential for the proper alignment of the rest of your teeth. Misaligned teeth can lead to a variety of different issues, including bruxism, uneven tooth wear, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder, and an increased risk of developing gum disease and tooth decay.
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They are important for the alignment of your mouth. The maxillary canines are the first teeth to touch when you bite down and work to guide the rest of your mouth into place.
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Your maxillary canines are the last of your teeth (other than your wisdom teeth) to come in, erupting around the age of 13. When they come in, they fill in the remaining gaps, giving you a complete, beautiful smile. |
Causes of Impacted Canines
There are a few different reasons why your maxillary canines may be impacted: | • |
Overcrowding. When your front teeth are overcrowded, usually a result of misalignment, there may not be enough room for your canines.
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Extra teeth. Any extra teeth you may have developed can block your canines, preventing their eruption.
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A growth on your gums. While rare, this can prevent the canines from coming in. |
How Impacted Canines are Diagnosed and Treated
It is recommended that young dental patients have an X-ray done by the age of 7, which can help to determine the risk for orthodontic issues, including impacted canines. Early detection can help to avoid any issues later with the eruption of the permanent canines. We can place a specialized brace that can move your child’s teeth to create sufficient space for the canines to come in on their own. Surgery is not always needed for younger patients, but there may be instances in which we can extract any baby teeth (or adult teeth), or remove any growths that may block proper canine eruption.
The older you get, the less likely it becomes that the canines will erupt on their own. In this case, we can help by exposing the impacted canine teeth so that they can be guided into proper alignment. We start by removing any necessary teeth that may be blocking your canines. To expose the canines, we create an incision in the gum tissue. If a baby tooth is still present, it is removed. We then bond a bracket onto the canine. The bracket is attached to your orthodontic braces using a metal chain. We will then attach a rubber band on to the chain, which will provide gentle pressure on your canines, helping to slowly pull them through the gums and guide them into place. It can take up to a year for your canines to reach proper alignment.
Are you interested in learning more about impacted canines? Give us a call at (513) 829-4400. We are happy to help you learn more about your smile! Or contact us online today! |
