Introduction
The milk teeth (dens deciduus or dens lactatis) are the first teeth of most mammals, including humans, and are replaced later in life by permanent teeth. The name “milk teeth” or “milk teeth” can be traced back to the coloration of the teeth, because they have a white, slightly bluish shimmering color, which is very similar to that of milk. In comparison to the permanent dentition (32 teeth), the milk dentition comprises only 20 teeth.
This difference makes sense because of the significantly smaller jaw of a baby or toddler. However, it is not only the number of teeth, but also their width and root length, that makes a clear difference between the “adult” and “child’s” dentition. Just like permanent teeth, milk teeth can be divided into four quadrants, two per jaw. The 1st quadrant describes the right upper jaw, the 2nd the left, the 3rd the left lower jaw and the 4th the right lower jaw. Each of these quadrants contains five milk teeth, the central incisor (Dens incisivus), the lateral incisor, the canine (Dens caninus) and the first and second molar.
Tooth eruption (Lacteale Dention)
The progressive growth of the upper and lower jaws leads to the fact that the spaces between the milk teeth (interdental spaces) increase more and more over time, thus creating space for the significantly larger, permanent teeth. This process is completely normal and important for further jaw and tooth development. The milk teeth therefore also fulfill an important task in terms of breaking through the permanent teeth.
It is therefore obvious that the early, mostly caries-related loss of a milk tooth is not unproblematic. The missing tooth creates a gap that becomes smaller over time and ultimately does not provide enough space for the permanent tooth. As a result, malpositioning of the permanent teeth often occurs. In case of premature loss of milk teeth, dentists use splints or braces, which act as space maintainers in the milk teeth. However, early tooth loss is not only associated with aesthetic problems, but also with disorders in normal speech development.