Volume 6 • 2019 • Issue 8

38 | 2019 | Issue 8 S upporting Y our P ractice  Timing surgical removal of odontoma in anterior region. Delayed timing of the panoramic radiograph in this case resulted in delayed eruption of tooth 21 for this patient (age 9). The radiograph shows teeth 11, 12 and 22 have erupted but tooth 21 is delayed ( Image 10 ). The odontoma developing in this area was not detected earlier and now the roots of tooth 21 have developed in a dilacerated form. Even if the odontoma were to be extracted, tooth 21 has a very low chance of self-eruption. Had this been diagnosed and treated by an extraction of that odontoma early on, then tooth 21 would have erupted into place or at least would have had a better chance of eruption.  Timing surgical removal of odontoma in posterior region. Here is another case of an odontoma forming in the posterior region, obstructing the eruption of tooth 26 ( Image 11a ). Again, the timing of the panoramic radiograph is important; tooth 26 could have been treated earlier had we diagnosed the odontoma at an earlier stage with a panoramic radiograph. Fortunately, we extracted the odontoma and tooth 26 erupted into place with some space loss that would be treated by means of a space regaining appliance ( Image 11b ). Reference 1. American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Guideline on prescribing dental radiographs for infants, children, adolescents, and persons with special health care needs, 2012. Available at: http://www.aapd.org/media/policies_ guidelines/e_radiographs.pdf. Accessed January 4, 2019. 10 11a 11b For newepisodes, visit oasisdiscussions.ca/category/thegrind or subscribe to The Grind on iTunes or other podcasting apps. If you’d like to share a story or have an idea for a future podcast, email oasisdiscussions@ cda-adc.ca Listen In... on the life of Canadian dental students. The Grind is a podcast hosted by CDA Oasis focusing on the experiences of Canadian dental students as they navigate their way through dental school and into dental practice.