Association between Hypodontia of the Permanent Lateral Incisors and other Dental Anomalies in School Children Aged 12-16 Years in Kosovo

Background: Hypodontia of lateral incisors (LI) is frequently associated with other dental anomalies. The objective of this study was to determine the association of LI with other dental anomalies by comparing the two groups: Group 1 with hypodontia of the maxillary LI (MLI1) and Group 2 with hypodontia of the mandibular LI (MLI2), in secondary school education students in Kosovo. Methods and Results: A total of 3306 secondary school students aged 12-16 years, regardless of gender, were included in this prospective study. The abnormalities investigated were recorded by RTG-panoramic and dental charts. The teeth were recorded as a congenital absence when the mineralization of the crown, identified by panoramic tomography, was absent. The prevalence of LI hypodontia was as follows: MLI1 (Group 1) included 36 cases (92.3%) and MLI2 (Group 2) included only 3 cases (7.6%), which indicates a much higher percentage of cases with hypodontia of MLI1. In Group 1, 21(58.3%) cases of LI hypodontia were bilateral and 15(41.7%) unilateral; in Group 2, 2(66.7%) cases were unilateral and 1(33.3%) case – bilateral. Among dental anomalies, the occurrence of rotation was found in 19(48.7%) cases with LI hypodontia: 47.2% cases in Group 1 and 66.7% cases in Group 2. The prevalence of dental inclination anomaly was 30.77% of all cases with hypodontia of LI: 27.8% of cases in Group 1 and 66.7% of cases in Group 2. The prevalence of ectopy was in 17.9% of cases of all hypodontia cases of LI: 16.7% of cases in Group 1 and 33.3% of cases in Group 2. Crown anomalies were evident in 7(17.9%) patients of all hypodontia cases of LI, all of which were in Group 1. Other anomalies such as microdontia were evident in two patients in Group 1. Transposition, bodily movement, and superposition were present in one patient in Group 1; in Group 2, one patient had transposition. At the same time, the frequency of dental transposition was significantly higher in Group 2 than in Group 1 (P=0.02088). Other dental anomalies of crown and root and infraposition were not present in both groups. There were no significant differences in the other dental anomalies between the two groups. Conclusion: The consequences of hypodontia in dental arches are obvious. Knowing the prevalence of hypodontia and its association with other dental anomalies helps classify the need for further treatment for the patients, whether orthodontic, prosthetic, or surgical.