Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 14, 2026
Midface Hypoplasia and Cranial Base Morphology in Syndromic Craniosynostosis: A Comparative Analysis Study Using a Predictive Regression Model
Published on: November 4, 2025
Craniofacial characteristics of children with mild hypodontia
Strahinja Vucic1, Brunilda Dhamo1, Mette A R Kuijpers2
1Postgraduate student, Generation R Study Group, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Special Dental Care and Orthodontics, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Introduction:
The aim of our study was to evaluate the craniofacial characteristics of children with mild hypodontia using conventional and principal component (PC) analysis.
Methods:
We used radiographic images of 124 children (8-12 years old) with up to 4 missing teeth (55 boys, 69 girls) and of 676 reference children (365 boys, 311 girls) from the Rotterdam Generation R Study and the Nijmegen Growth Study in The Netherlands. Fifteen cephalometric measurements of children with hypodontia were compared with those of the reference children. Moreover, cephalometric parameters were combined into standardized PC scores using PC analysis, and the components were compared between the 2 groups.
Results:
PC analysis showed common dental characteristics for all types of hypodontia: a significant increase of the interincisal angle, and decreases of the maxillary and mandibular incisor angles. Other findings were consistent when both methods were applied: (1) anterior hypodontia was significantly associated with the high-angle (hyperdivergent) craniofacial pattern, (2) the tendency toward a Class III malocclusion was identified in maxillary hypodontia, and (3) we observed a significant reduction of lower posterior facial height in children with posterior and mandibular hypodontia.
Conclusions:
Our findings suggest that children with mild hypodontia have distinctive skeletal and dental features.
Related Concept Videos
01:15Teeth
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...
01:21Tooth 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...
01:27Cranial Bones: Lateral View
The temporal bone forms the lower lateral side of the skull. The temporal bone is subdivided into several regions. The flattened upper portion is the squamous portion of the temporal bone. Below this area and projecting anteriorly is the zygomatic process of the temporal bone, which forms the posterior portion of the zygomatic arch. Posteriorly is the mastoid portion of the temporal bone. Projecting...
01:22Sutures of the Skull
Sutures are immobile joints between adjacent bones of the skull. The narrow gap between the bones is filled with dense, fibrous connective tissue that unites the bones. The long sutures located between the skull bones are not straight but instead follow irregular, tightly twisting paths. These twisting lines tightly...
01:08Overview of the Skull
The cranial vault surrounds and protects the brain and houses the middle and inner ear structures. This cavity is bounded superiorly by the rounded top of the skull, which...
01:14Cranial Bones: Superior and Posterior View
The frontal bone is the single bone that forms the forehead. At its anterior midline, between the eyebrows, there is a slight depression called the glabella. The frontal bone also forms the supraorbital margin of the orbit. Near the middle of this margin is the supraorbital foramen, the opening that provides passage for a sensory nerve to the forehead. The frontal bone is thickened just above each supraorbital margin,...