The normal width of the lateral incisors in the maxilla in an European population

Dental anomalies are clinical alterations that originate during the tooth formation process. This prospective study aims to establish the norm and hypoplasia values for maxillary lateral incisors. Additionally, it aims to describe the relationship between the width of the lateral and the central incisors, considering gender, age, and body height.

The first 103 consecutive patients meeting the inclusion criteria were included in the study. The upper jaw of each patient was scanned, and the scans were saved as standard tessellation language (STL) files. The upper incisors of each digital cast were measured on the computer. Two examiners performed the same measurements independently.

The average size of the maxillary central incisor was 8.59 ± 0.51 mm, while the average size of the maxillary lateral incisor was 6.64 ± 0.46 mm. A formula describing a relationship between the central (x) and lateral (y) incisors was defined with a linear regression analysis y = 1.88 + 0.55 * x. Width of maxillary incisors [11, 12, 21, 22] increased with height (p = 0.028, p = 0.016, p = 0.016, p = 0.046 respectively).

Hypoplasia of the maxillary lateral incisor can be defined for teeth with a mesiodistal width less than 6.18 mm in a patient that is represented with the test group. A relationship between the maxillary lateral incisors and central incisors could have been established by means of a formula.

The width of the maxillary lateral incisors allows a precise orthodontic and prosthetic planning.