Most people will grow twenty baby teeth and then have them all replaced with about thirty-two permanent teeth, all in a neat little row in the upper and lower jaws. However, the occasional individual will develop excess teeth, sometimes in irregular places throughout the mouth. This is a condition known to our Lynnwood dentistry clinic as hyperdontia.
It’s not entirely clear what causes hyperdontia, though genetics and environmental concerns are high on the list of suspects. The condition frequently comes with other conditions, including Down syndrome, cleft lip, and Gardner’s syndrome. The supernumerary teeth cause problems in that they crowd your normal teeth and push them out of alignment. Such teeth should be extracted by a dentist, and an orthodontist may be needed to straighten out your remaining teeth.
