Natal Teeth: a Clinical Presentation, Management and Prognosis

Objective: The clinical management and prognosis of natal teeth in an infant. Method: A young mother was referred to the Oral Health Centre with her ten-week-old male infant. The child had two natal teeth at birth present in the lower anterior segment of the mouth. She wanted to know if the teeth had to be extracted and, what does the presence or absence of these teeth mean to the child's developing dentition. The child was healthy with normal development. The pregnancy and birth were uneventful. There was no family history of natal teeth. The presence of the natal teeth did not pose a problem orally or with nursing as the child was on bottle-feeds. Result: Two teeth were visible at birth but at consultation only the 81 was visible. Gingival tissue covered the 71. The 81 was not extracted as it had negligible mobility. Four months later (age six months) both the 81 and 71 were visible in the mouth but no other primary teeth were present. At 10 months the 81'fell out' and two months later the 71 also ‘fell out' but baby ‘swallowed it'. Child continued to develop normally attaining all the developmental milestones. At age 12 months no primary teeth were present in the mouth. By 14 months of age only the 51 and 61 had erupted. A radiograph was taken to assess the tooth development in mandibular anterior segment. No other primary central incisors were visible. It appeared as if there were traces of secondary tooth bud development of the mandibular central incisors. Conclusion: The natal teeth failed to develop roots and spontaneously exfoliated. They represented the premature eruption of the primary mandibular central incisors and not supernumerary teeth.