Abstract
Although impaction of primary teeth is much rarer than that of permanent teeth, detecting impaction early is extremely important to prevent delayed eruption, malposition, and hypoplasia of permanent successor teeth. We encountered a case of a completely impacted mandibular right primary second molar with eruption by fenestration and traction.A 2-year-8-month-old boy who had been periodically examined since age 1 was suspected of having an impacted mandibular right primary second molar. He was diagnosed using panoramic radiography at 4 years and 3 months of age. The mandibular right primary second molar was impacted with distal inclination and had a pericoronal radiolucent area with radiopaque object. The mandibular right permanent first molar had a cystic lesion around the crown.At 5 years 2 months of age, elimination of a hamartomatous lesion and fenestration were done under general anesthesia. After the observation period of six months from the operation, traction was started. The mandibular right primary second molar erupted after one year. The mandibular right permanent first molar erupted at 8 years 7 months of age. Soon after the mandibular right primary second molar was shed, the mandibular right permanent second premolar erupted at 10 years 11 months of age.In this case, early discovery and initiation of treatment at the correct time facilitated eruption of the mandibular right primary second molar. Long-term observation revealed prompt growth of the mandibular right permanent first molar and the mandibular right permanent second premolar. Results show that continued periodic examination is important for growth of a healthy permanent dentition.
