Mesiodistal diameter of upper and low incisors and canines. Incisal indexes. Matanzas, 2012

Abstract

Teeth size allows arriving to a precocious diagnosis of the lack of space for their future location in the dental arch and practicing early interceptive treatments. The aim of this work was finding out  the mesiodistal diameter of upper and low incisors and canines, and the upper and low incisal indexes, with the objective of establishing  this population own values contributing to the diagnosis quality improvement in Orthodontics.  We carried out a cross-sectional descriptive study in people with normal occlusion, in a sample of 362 students: 174 females and 188 males, 143 aged 12 years, 106 aged 13 years and 133 aged 14 years, selected in the secondary schools of the city of Matanzas. Measures were taken by only one person, directly in the mouth, from the mesial contact point to the distal one, at the level of the higher diameter using a Vernier caliper. The used variables were age, gender, and teeth mesial-distal diameter. We determined mesial-distal diameters of the upper and lower arches with similar sizes in both right and left sides, and upper (31,20 mm)and lower (22,70 mm) incisal indexes. We found sexual dimorphism, based on the males´ higher size of the lateral incisors (P= 0,008), and upper right canines (P= 0,000), and also of the right lateral incisors (P= 0,001) and low right canines (P= 0,000).