Dental agenesis patterns of permanent teeth in Apert syndrome

Dental agenesis may either occur as an isolated trait (non-syndromic) or as a component in a congenital syndrome. The aim of the present study was to identify the prevalence of dental agenesis for each type of tooth and to look for dental agenesis patterns in persons with Apert syndrome. Serial panoramic radiographs of 23 individuals (five male patients and 18 female patients) were examined. Third molars were excluded. The prevalence of agenesis for at least one tooth was 34.8%. Up to two missing teeth were found for individuals with Apert syndrome. Maxillary lateral incisors and mandibular second premolars were the most frequently missing teeth. Four different dental agenesis patterns of the entire dentition were identified by using the tooth agenesis code (TAC). Two patterns occurred more frequently, both of which were symmetrical. One involved the simultaneous absence of teeth 12 and 22, and the other showed agenesis of teeth 35 and 45. In conclusion, patients with Apert syndrome were found to exhibit a high prevalence of dental agenesis. All dental agenesis patterns in which more than one tooth was missing were symmetrical.