NEW DELHI, October 29: Doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences recently removed as many as 202 denticles—abnormal teeth-like growth—from a 7-year-old girl. A Gurgaon-based hotelier had brought her daughter to the institute’s dental centre with swollen gums and pain in the mouth.
According to Dr Ajoy Roychoudhary, who heads the oral and maxillofacial surgery, an X-ray revealed that she suffered from compound odontome—a complex tumour composed of normal dental tissues that have grown in an irregular way. It was only visible inside the mouth.
“Normally, we see a few abnormal teeth-like structures in such patients; 202 of them inside the mouth of a 7-year-old is shocking, to say the least,” he said. It took nearly two hours to remove the teeth-like growth, the AIIMS doctor said.
“Though the surgery is simple, it requires high precision since any damage to the adjoining tissues or the jawline could take a long time to heal. We used a special bone-cutting instrument to remove the tumour in this case,” said Dr Ongkila Bhutia, additional professor, oral and maxillofacial surgery at the Centre of Dental Education and Research at AIIMS.
She has been put on fluids and semi-solid food. Doctors said the girl is doing fine and can eat solid food within a few months. “This is perhaps her best birthday gift. The surgery was conducted a day after her birthday. She cut the cake at the hospital only and celebrated it with her parents and doctors,” said a family member.
“These abnormal teeth-like structures have been attributed to various pathological conditions like local trauma, hereditary anamolies or infections, but in this case, the cause could not be confirmed,” said Dr Ankit Arora, a senior resident doctor.
A similar case was reported from a Mumbai hospital, where the doctors removed 232 teeth from a 17-year-old. The average age of people found with an odontoma is 10 to 18 years. It is commonly associated with one or more unerupted teeth.
