Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 19, 2026

The Slice Culture Method for Following Development of Tooth Germs In Explant Culture
Published on: November 13, 2013
Timing of Demirjian's tooth formation stages
H M Liversidge1, N Chaillet, H Mörnstad
1Dental Institute, Bart's and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Dental Institute, London, UK. h.m.liversidge@qmul.ac.uk
Background:
Global differences in Demirjian et al.'s method of assessing dental maturity are thought to be due to population differences.
Aim:
The aim of this study was to investigate the timing of individual tooth formation stages in children from eight countries.
Research Design:
This was a meta-analysis of previously published data from retrospective cross-sectional studies of dental maturity.
Method:
Data of mandibular permanent developing teeth from panoramic radiographs (Demirjian's stages) were combined from Australia, Belgium, Canada, England, Finland, France, South Korea and Sweden (n = 9002, ages 2-16.99 years). Age-of-attainment was calculated using logistic regression for each group by sex and meta-analysis of the total. Overlapping 95% confidence intervals of the means was interpreted as no significant difference.
Results:
Mean ages for each group and total were significantly different in 65 out of 509 comparisons (p < 0.05). Some of these were of small sample size but there was no consistent pattern. Apex closure of the first molar was significantly later in children from Quebec and this might explain differences found in the dental maturity score.
Conclusions:
These results suggest no major differences in the timing of tooth formation stages between these children. This fails to explain previous findings of differences using Demirjian's dental maturity method.
Related Concept Videos
Teeth
In the bud stage, the tooth germ (an aggregation of cells) starts to form in the developing jawbone. During the cap stage, the tooth germ differentiates into enamel organ, dental papilla, and dental sac, which will later develop into the tooth's enamel, dentin and...
Tooth Anatomy
The Crown, Neck, and Root
The visible part of the tooth is referred to as the crown. It's covered by enamel, the hardest substance in the human body. The crown is uniquely shaped for each type of tooth, allowing for different functions such as cutting, tearing, or grinding food.
Development of the Oral Microbiota
Bone Formation by Intramembranous Ossification
The process begins when mesenchymal cells in the embryonic skeleton gather together and differentiate into osteogenic cells, which then develop into...
Bone Formation by Endochondral Ossification
Changes in the Appendicular Skeleton with Age
Initially, the limb buds consist of a core of mesenchyme covered by a layer of ectoderm. The ectoderm at the end of the limb bud thickens to form a narrow crest called the apical ectodermal ridge. This ridge stimulates the underlying...

