Case Presentation
Exclusive congenital absence of both the maxillary and the mandibular canines is a sporadic occurrence, and to date, only a few cases have been reported that too with at least one canine1. Bilateral maxillary canine agenesis is rare and ranges between 0.07 and 0.13%. This paper reports non-syndromic bilateral agenesis of permanent canines in the maxilla and the mandible, with only two such cases reported before1,2. A 25-year-old female patient reported to the clinic with a chief complaint of wanting to align her teeth.
On intra-oral examination, permanent canines were absent in both the maxillary and the mandibular arches, along with crowding [Figure1]. The patient reported no familial history of missing teeth, no prior history of extractions, or previous significant dental treatment. Suspecting that the patient may have multiple canine impactions, the patient was advised to get a panoramic x-ray done. On radiographic examination using the panoramic x-ray, it was observed that the permanent canines were absent in both arches [Figure2]. Several reasons have been reported for missing canines, such as heredity, localized disturbances, syndromes, radiological effects, endocrine disorders, and prenatal infections. However, the exact cause of Congenitally absent permanent canines in most cases remains obscure.