Prevalence and Axial Inclination of Impacted Canines Based on OPG Radiographs in Patients Referred to Mashhad Dental Faculty: A Retrospective Study in 2018

Impaction of maxillary canines is one of the common developmental disorders in all societies worldwide, including Iranian adolescents. It can bring about serious problems for adjacent teeth and the jaw. Therefore, early detection of this issue is of utmost importance. The present study aimed to determine the frequency and axial inclination of impacted canines based on OPG radiography in patients referred to Mashhad Dental School. In this descriptive, cross-sectional, and retrospective study which assessed 4,058 OPG radiographs in Mashhad Dental School, the prevalence of impacted canines was determined based on age, gender, region, the existence of other impacted teeth, and axial inclination based on Yamamoto’s classification system. Moreover, the relationship of gender with impacted tooth region and existence of other impacted teeth. A p-value of 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Out of 4, 058 OPG radiographs, 38 (0.94%) cases had maxillary canine impaction. The abundance of impacted canines was higher in women (57.9%) than men (42.1%) and in the age range of 16-20 years. Regarding association with other impacted teeth, the highest frequency was related to the mandibular third molar (38.46%). Out of 38 cases of impacted canines, the most frequent type was type II impaction (58.3%). The results of the Chi-Square test demonstrated that gender was not significantly correlated with the impacted tooth region and the existence of other impacted teeth. As evidenced by the obtained results, the prevalence of maxillary canine impaction in the study population was high, and therefore, the impaction of this tooth should always be considered in radiographic images, especially in routine examination duration adolescents and adults.