[Individual variability in the duration of the second phase of the mixed dentition]

With a collection of dental casts from a longitudinal study of 175 orthodontically untreated probands (100 children without and 75 children with premature loss of deciduous molars and/or canines) serving as a base, the duration of the second period of mixed dentition was determined to be in relation to the probands the period of time between the gingival emergence of the first permanent buccal tooth and the full eruption of the set of teeth. The second period of mixed dentition in boys without premature loss of deciduous molars and canines lasts on an average 3.6 +/- 1.1 years and in girls 3.8 +/- 1.0 years. In cases of premature loss of deciduous molars and/or canines, the period of dentition is distinctly longer than under normal development conditions. The outside parameters (boys: Xmin = 0.9 years, Xmax = 6.2 years; girls: Xmin = 2.6 years, Xmax = 8.6 years), reflect a high degree of variability. The duration of the second period of mixed dentition is significantly affected by "the point in time of inception" and by the criteria "morphologically intact support zones" and "premature loss of deciduous molars and/or canines". Even given such data, however, it is not possible to make a sufficiently reliable prediction on an individual basis of the duration of the dentition.