Calcification of the human deciduous teeth

Results of an examination of 95 human fetuses indicate that textbooks in the fields of dental anatomy, histology and embryology have erred in assertions relating to three concepts pertaining to the calcification of the human deciduous dentition.

Abstract

Results of an examination of 95 human fetuses indicate that textbooks in the fields of dental anatomy, histology and embryology have erred in assertions relating to three concepts pertaining to the calcification of the human deciduous dentition. It has been found that: (1) initial calcification begins in the deciduous central incisors as early as 12 weeks or as late as 16 weeks; (2) the sequence of initial calcification is rigid, and does not run in regular sequence from the central incisor to the second molar, and (3) there is no evidence for more than one center of calcification either for the deciduous incisors or cuspids. Results of an examination of 95 human fetuses indicate that textbooks in the fields of dental anatomy, histology and embryology have erred in assertions relating to three concepts pertaining to the calcification of the human deciduous dentition. It has been found that: (1) initial calcification begins in the deciduous central incisors as early as 12 weeks or as late as 16 weeks; (2) the sequence of initial calcification is rigid, and does not run in regular sequence from the central incisor to the second molar, and (3) there is no evidence for more than one center of calcification either for the deciduous incisors or cuspids.