Impacted maxillary canines: contemporary management and review of the literature

Abstract

Management of impacted maxillary canines forms a sizeable proportion of orthodontic treatment provided in dental school and district general hospital settings. Patients presenting with impacted canines fall into the highest category on the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN). Patients who agree to have surgical exposure and subsequent orthodontic alignment of an impacted canine are committing themselves to a course of treatment that could take up to three years, towards the end of which the patient's enthusiasm may be waning. Prevention, or at least early interception of the impacted canine, could save a protracted course of treatment and avert not only the surgical morbidity associated with exposure of the impacted tooth but also the general risks associated with orthodontic treatment.