Relationship between pterygomaxillary notches and maxillary anterior teeth

Abstract

Purpose: Selection of the appropriate size of maxillary anterior teeth in complete dentures may be difficult, as there is no universally accepted method that can be used reliably. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is a relationship between the total mesiodistal width of the six maxillary anterior teeth and the interpterygomaxillary notch distance.

Material and methods: One hundred and ten maxillary impressions were made on dental students (67 women, 43 men; 19 to 22 years old) using stock tray and irreversible hydrocolloid impression material. The mesiodistal width of the six maxillary anterior teeth and the distance of the interpterygomaxillary notch were measured by digital caliper on stone casts (on two separate occasions by two independent observers). The results were analyzed using correlation regression tests.

Results: The mean mesiodistal width of the six maxillary anterior teeth was 46.02 (+/-2.8) mm, and the mean distance of the interpterygomaxillary notch was 42.38 (+/-3.47) mm. A significant correlation was found between mesiodistal width of the maxillary anterior teeth and the interpterygomaxillary notch distance (p= 0.003; r = 0.28). Standardized coefficient was found to be low (28%) to predict the appropriate size of maxillary anterior teeth.

Conclusion: Total mesiodistal width of the maxillary anterior teeth correlated with the distance between pterygomaxillary notches; however, measurement of the interpterygomaxillary notch could not be used for tooth selection reliably due to the low standardized coefficient. Within the limitations of this study, the interpterygomaxillary notch distance is not useful for the selection of six maxillary anterior teeth in edentulous patients.