A 13-year-old Caucasian boy with cleidocranial dysplasia: a case report

Cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD) is a rare congenital autosomal dominant skeletal disorder. The disorder is caused by heterozygosity of mutations in human RUNX2, which is present on the short arm of chromosome 6p21. The incidence of CCD is one per million births. CCD appears spontaneously with no apparent genetic cause in approximately 40% of affected patients, and one in three patients has unaffected parents. The most prevalent features associated with CCD are aplastic or hypoplastic clavicles, supernumerary teeth, failed eruption of permanent teeth, and a hypoplastic maxilla.

A 13-year-old Caucasian boy presented with a chief complaint of delayed eruption of the permanent anterior teeth. The patient was subsequently diagnosed with CCD based on the clinical examination, panoramic X-ray, anterior-posterior and lateral cephalogram, and chest radiograph findings. The details of this case are herein reported because of the extremely low incidence of this disorder.

CCD is of clinical importance in dentistry and medicine because it affects the bones and teeth and is characterized by many changes in skeletal patterning and growth. Particularly in dentistry, CCD is of great clinical significance because is associated with delayed ossification of the skull sutures, delayed exfoliation of the primary teeth, lack of permanent teeth eruption, multiple supernumerary teeth, and morphological abnormalities of the maxilla and mandible. Patients with CCD seek treatment mainly for dental problems. Knowledge of the pathogenesis, clinical characteristics, and diagnostic tools of CCD will enable clinicians to render the appropriate treatment to improve function and aesthetics. Early diagnosis of CCD is crucial for timely initiation of an appropriate treatment approach.