Orthodontic Treatment of Sisters Associated with Severe Partial Anodontia

Abstract

Partial anodontia is the term used when parts of the complete dentition are missing. There is a familial distribution of congenital absence of teeth in many instances, and heredity as an etiologic factor of importance has been generally accepted. We have experienced a familial case of partial anodontia in a mother and three daughters. In addition, we demonstrated orthodontic treatments of the eldest sister and youngest sister, who both have short roots of maxillary central incisors, ankylosis of labial frenum and diastema. Total number of missing teeth for the eldest sister and youngest sister is 13 and 14, respectively. A multibracket system was applied for the sisters with limited orthodontic treatment objectives. Even though the treatment objectives were limited, total period of active treatment for the eldest sister extended for more than 2 years. Moreover, the relapse of diasthema appeared after a short period of retension. Based upon the treatment result of the eldest sister, we tried to shorten the period of orthodontic treatment for the youngest sister. Her active treatment was shortened to 13 months, while her retention period was extended to 26 months. Fixed prosthodontic treatment was required for both sisters after orthodontic treatment. Long-term care was required for their occlusal rehabilitation, both orthodontically and prosthodontically.