Double facial talons on maxillary incisor-A rare case report and new proposed classification system

Double facial talon's cusp is a rare developmental anomaly affecting the deciduous or/and permanent dentition. The major complications associated with facial talons of maxillary incisors include poor esthetic appearance with increased susceptibility to caries and, sometimes, even soft tissue irritation, thereby needing early detection and precise management.

We report a case of a 10 year-old female patient with a large double talon's cusp on the permanent left maxillary central incisor who presented with issues of soft tissue irritation and esthetic concern. One of the highlighting feature of this documented case was the difference in the extent of both talon's cusps on the facial surface of 21 teeth. As per Mayes' classification system, the talon towards the midline belonged to stage 2 and the talon away from the midline belonged to stage 3.

Based on the previous literature search on classification systems, we intended to propose a new classification system for double facial talons depending on their size (equal/unequal) and presence of developmental grooves (separate or fused). The aim of this new classification system is to enlighten a new area of research that can be conducted on the treatment aspect by studying the difference in the structure of enamel rods, dentin, especially in case of double talons of unequal size (as the direction of enamel rods/dentinal tubules of the talons with that of the direction of enamel rods/dentinal tubules of the underlying tooth will vary) and their compatibility with choice of dental materials, to be used for proper adaptation and develop new treatment protocols of tooth preparation and restoration for such cases.