Tooth Morphology Workbook 1

Tooth Morphology Workbook 1

• This workbook is used in conjunction with sessions on dentitions/tooth morphology.
• The workbook aims to help students meet intended learning outcomes, including:
  • Recognizing the basic structure of a tooth and its surrounding tissues
  • Listing the functions of the teeth
  • Revising various dental notations for primary and secondary teeth
  • Describing terminology for tooth morphology to identify landmarks

Structure of Tooth

• Dentine: Located in the space between the root and the bony socket; tough fibrous layer of connective tissue covering the bone of the upper and lower jaws. It's function needs to be described.
• Enamel: Found covering the root; embedded within the dentine walls.

Tooth Parts

• The diagram of the tooth should be labeled with the following terms: Neck, Gingivae, Periodontal ligament, Dentine, Cementum, Root, Root canal, Alveolar bone, Pulp chamber, Enamel, Crown.

Dental Terminology

• Alignment: Arranging in a straight line.
• Alveolar Process: The bone of the maxilla that supports the teeth
• Apical Foramen: The opening in the root tip through which blood, nerve, and lymph pass.
• Atrophy: The gradual wasting away of tissue.
• Bifurcation: The point where two structures divide.
• Cusp: A peak on the surface of a tooth; lingual or palatal lobe found on incisor teeth.
• Cusp of Carabelli: An extra cusp found on the mesio-palatal surface of some first maxillary permanent molars.
• Diastema: Spacing between teeth.
• Disto-incisal angle: Point where the disto and incisal edges meet.
• Embrasure: Small space between the contact areas.
• Eminence: A bulge or protuberance.
• Fissure: A fault or a small opening. Usually found on the buccal or occlusal surfaces of teeth or on the developmental lobes.
• Fossa: A shallow depression.
• Incisal Edge: Biting edge of the teeth (used for cutting).
• Malocclusion: Abnormal arrangement of the teeth.
• Marginal Ridges: Enamel ridges on the mesial and distal edges.
• Neck of the Tooth: The portion of a tooth joining the crown and root.
• Oblique Ridge: A ridge that runs obliquely across the occlusal surface of molars.
• Occlusion: Relationship of upper and lower teeth when the jaws are together.
• Periodontal: Pertaining to the tissues that surround the tooth (including the gums).
• Pulp: The vital part of the tooth contained in the pulp chamber
• Ridge: Linear elevation on the tooth surface.
• Root Trunk: The part of the root between the cervix and the point of the roots.
• Transverse Ridge: A ridge that descends from the cusp tip to the central part of the occlusal surface.
• Tubercle: A rounded elevation on the surface of a tooth.