Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 27, 2026
Author Spotlight: 3D Movement Assessment of Maxillary Posterior Teeth in Clear Aligner Treatment
Published on: February 23, 2024
Midpalatal suture maturation in 11- to 15-year-olds: A cone-beam computed tomographic study
Diego Luiz Tonello1, Victor de Miranda Ladewig1, Fábio Pinto Guedes1
1Department of Orthodontics, Sagrado Coração University, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil.
Introduction:
We used cone-beam computed tomography to evaluate the maturation stages of the midpalatal sutures in children aged 11 to 15 years old. Maxillary expansion is successful for most patients in this age group, so we sought to identify the status of suture maturation in these subjects to use as a comparison for the prognosis of rapid maxillary expansion in older patients.
Methods:
Tomographic images in axial sections of the midpalatal sutures from 84 children (40 boys, 44 girls; ages, 11-15 years) were classified using a scale denoting the maturation stage of the midpalatal suture (A, B, C, D, and E). The chi-square test was applied to evaluate suture stages by sex and age groups.
Results:
Stage A was observed in only one 11-year-old girl. Stage B was present at all ages but was more prevalent in those less than 13 years of age. Stage C was the most prevalent in all evaluated ages. Stages D and E showed low prevalence rates. There were higher prevalences of the early stages of maturation in boys.
Conclusions:
The results of this study, which showed dominant prevalence of stage C, suggest that conventional, nonsurgical rapid maxillary expansion performed in patients over 15 years old is justified by a satisfactory prognosis when assessment of the sutural status indicates stage C.
Related Concept Videos
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...
01:15Teeth
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...