Occlusion in 47,XXY (Klinefelter syndrome) men

Occlusal morphology of permanent dentitions in 29 men with a 47,XXY chromosome complement (Klinefelter syndrome) was determined from dental casts. The results showed that a relatively frequent occlusal anomaly was mesial molar occlusion. Incisal open bite was also more common than in controls. Based on the present and previous observations of occlusal anomalies in various sex chromosome anomaly groups and normal controls, it is suggested that the presence of the Y chromosome in the genome is at least as important as the X chromosome for the development of harmonious occlusal morphology. The tendency towards sexual dimorphism in occlusal phenotype might result from a differential effect of the X and Y chromosomes on cellular activity which leads to different growth patterns.