Missing maxillary canine

Abstract

When a maxillary canine has not appeared in the arch at its scheduled time of arrival, the treating dentist should make a precise analysis of the possible factors responsible for its absence and devise the best therapeutic plan for correcting the problem. Factors to be considered are its agenesis or the more likely possibility of anomalies of tooth size and eruption patterns. Deciding whether to bring an absent canine into place orthodontically or to replace it prosthetically or with an implant almost always constitutes a sort of therapeutic wager.