Introduction: Third molars are the last teeth to form in the permanent dentition. In some individuals, jaw growth completion precedes the time of eruption of third molars, which creates conditions for their complete or partial retention in the bone. In order to predict the risk of wisdom tooth retention, methods have been developed that provide the possibility for early diagnosis of the deviations in their eruption.
Aim: The aim of this review article is to present different methods for diagnosis of third permanent molar impaction on orthopantomography.
Materials and Methods: Online research of 30 articles in different databases—PubMed, ResearchGate, Thieme, and Elsevier.
Results: In this article are described different methods: a method for predicting the impaction of maxillary third molars, Haavikko’s method, Ganns’ ratio for predicting the available space for eruption of mandibular molars, Olive-Basford’s method, Olmos’ method, and Cryer’s method.
Discussion: The reduction of space available for third molar eruption, leading to partial or complete retention, is an evolutionary process, determined by the reduction in the size of the lower and, to a lesser extent, the upper jaw in relation to the modern eating habits of the population. This increases the need for early diagnosis of possible deviations in eruption and control over any impact on the developing of the occlusion and function.
Conclusion: The presented methods give the opportunity for early diagnosis of the deviations in the eruption of third molars. Their application allows the clinician to increase the accuracy of the prognosis and the risk assessment regarding the stability of the orthodontic treatment results.
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