Frequency of congenitally missing third molars in orthodontic patients.

Abstract

Objective: To determine the frequency of congenitally missing third molars in Orthodontic patients. Study Design: Retrospective Study. Setting: Department of Orthodontics at Abbottabad International Dental College, Abbottabad. Period: February 2021 to November 2021. Material & Methods: Retrospective data was collected from the files in the departmental archives. Files from the past seven years were studied for data collection. Congenitally missing teeth were identified from the patient’s history and the Orthopantomogram present within each file. The collected data was analyzed via SPSS software Version 21. Results: Chi-square test was applied to find the frequency of missing teeth. Congenital absence of third molars was highly significant among maxilla and mandible (p-value <0.001). No significant difference was found among the genders.  Conclusion: Congenitally missing third molars are more prevalent in the maxilla than the mandible.