Natal teeth are

teeth A tooth (: teeth) is a hard, calcified structure found in the jaws (or mouths) of many vertebrates and used to break down food. Some animals, particularly carnivores and omnivores, also use teeth to help with capturing or wounding prey, tear ...

that are present above the gumline (have already erupted) at

birth Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring, also referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the f ...

, and neonatal teeth are teeth that emerge through the

gingiva The gums or gingiva (: gingivae) consist of the mucosal tissue that lies over the mandible and maxilla inside the mouth. Gum health and disease can have an effect on general health. Structure The gums are part of the soft tissue lining of the ...

during the first month of life (the

neonatal In common terminology, a baby is the very young offspring of adult human beings, while infant (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to Juvenile (orga ...

period). The incidence of neonatal teeth varies considerably, between 1:700 and 1:30,000 depending on the type of study; the highest prevalence is found in the only study that relies on personal examination of patients. Natal teeth, and neonatal teeth, can be the baby's normal deciduous teeth, sprouting prematurely. These should be preserved, if possible. Alternately, they could be

supernumerary teeth Hyperdontia is the condition of having supernumerary teeth, or teeth that appear in addition to the regular number of teeth (32 in the average adult). They can appear in any area of the dental arch and can affect any dental organ. The opposite ...

, extra teeth, not part of the normal allotment of teeth.

Signs and symptoms

Most often natal teeth are mandibular central incisors. They have little root structure and are attached to the end of the gum by soft tissue and are often mobile.

Causes

Most of the time, natal teeth are not related to a medical condition. However, sometimes they may be associated with: * Ellis–van Creveld syndrome * Hallermann–Streiff syndrome *

Pierre Robin syndrome Pierre Robin sequence (; abbreviated PRS) is a congenital defect observed in humans which is characterized by facial abnormalities. The three main features are micrognathia (abnormally small mandible), which causes glossoptosis (downwardly displ ...

Sotos syndrome Sotos syndrome is a rare genetic disorder characterized by excessive physical growth during the first years of life. Excessive growth often starts in infancy and continues into the early teen years. The disorder may be accompanied by autism, mild ...

Treatment

No intervention is usually recommended unless they are causing difficulty to the infant or mother. However some recommend that they be removed as the tooth can cut or amputate the tip of the tongue. They should be left in the mouth as long as possible to decrease the likelihood of removing permanent tooth buds with the natal tooth. They should also not be removed if the infant has hypoprothrombinemia. In case of complications when the natal teeth need to be removed, dental radiographs should be obtained whenever possible, and evaluated and followed up with pediatric dentists.

Society and culture

Notable cases

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

Ivan the Terrible Ivan IV Vasilyevich (; – ), commonly known as Ivan the Terrible,; ; monastic name: Jonah. was Grand Prince of Moscow, Grand Prince of Moscow and all Russia from 1533 to 1547, and the first Tsar of all Russia, Tsar and Grand Prince of all R ...

Kate Mulgrew Katherine Kiernan Maria Mulgrew (born April 29, 1955) is an American actress and author. She is best known for her roles as Captain Kathryn Janeway in '' Star Trek: Voyager'' and Red in ''Orange Is the New Black''. She first came to attention ...

Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, Count of Mirabeau (; 9 March 17492 April 1791) was a French writer, orator, statesman and a prominent figure of the early stages of the French Revolution. A member of the nobility, Mirabeau had been involved in numerous ...

Cardinal Mazarin Jules Mazarin (born Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino or Mazarini; 14 July 1602 – 9 March 1661), from 1641 known as Cardinal Mazarin, was an Italian Catholic prelate, diplomat and politician who served as the chief minister to the Kings of France Lou ...

Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...

Zoroaster Zarathushtra Spitama, more commonly known as Zoroaster or Zarathustra, was an Iranian peoples, Iranian religious reformer who challenged the tenets of the contemporary Ancient Iranian religion, becoming the spiritual founder of Zoroastrianism ...

Hannibal Hannibal (; ; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Punic people, Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Ancient Carthage, Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Punic War. Hannibal's fat ...

References

External links

{{oral pathology Neonatology Types of teeth Congenital disorders Human mouth anatomy