Dr. Saleem Shaikh
http://faculty.mu.edu.sa/sfaiz
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Dental morphology (2 credit hours, 1 theory and 1 practical)
The following percentages (%) of the total grade will be assigned:
Theoretical part ……………………………….…………..………………50%
Practical part ………………………………………………………………50%
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In-course assessments……………………………………………….... 60%
o Midterm written examination ………..…20%
o Mid term practical ……………………………15%
o Weekly practical assessments ……………15%
o Behavior and attitude ………..………….…….5%
o Research ………………………………………….....2%
o Home work ………………………….……………...1%
o Presentation ………………………………………..1%
o Quiz….. ……………………………………………..…1%
Final examination …………………..…………………………………….40 %
o Final practical examination …………15%
o Final written examination ……………25%
 Importance of dental morphology
 Importance of teeth identification
 Why should we carve tooth???
 Human dentition rest on
the Jaws
 2 jaws – maxilla and
mandible
 Correspondingly – 2
arches
 Each arch is further
divided into quadrants
 There are two sets of dentition – primary & permanent
 Permanent has 32 teeth – each quadrant has 8 teeth
 2- Incisors, 1-Canine ,2-Premolars, 3-Molars
 Primary has 20 teeth – each quadrant has 5 teeth
 2- incisors, 1- Canine, 2- Molars
Note: primary dentition does not have premolars and 3rd
molars.
crown
Cervical line
root
 Enamel : The hard, mineralized tissue which forms the
outer covering of the crown. It is the hardest living body
tissue.
 Dentin : The hard tissue which forms the main body of the
tooth. It surrounds the pulp cavity, and is covered by the
enamel in the anatomical crown, and by the cementum in
the anatomical root. The dentin constitutes the bulk of the
total tooth tissues.
 Cementum : The layer of hard tissue which forms the
outer covering of the root of a tooth.
 Pulp : The living soft tissue which occupies the pulp cavity
of a vital tooth. It contains the tooth’s nutrient supply in
the form of blood vessels, as well as the nerve supply.
 Periodontal ligament: It is the soft specialized
connective tissue which is situated between the
cementum of the tooth and alveolar bone. Helps in
anchoring the tooth in its socket.
 Periodontium: consists of 2 soft and 2 hard tissues
 Periodontal ligament
 Gingiva
 Cementum
 Alveolar bone
 Each tooth has five surfaces which are identified /
named in relation to its surrounding orofacial
structures.
 Facial – labial/ buccal
 Lingual
 Mesial
 Distal
 Incisal/ occlusal
LABIAL is facial surface
of the anterior teeth
BUCCAL is the facial
surface of the posterior
teeth
palatal
 Crown Elavations :
 Cusps : Elevated and usually pointed projections of various
sizes and shapes on the crowns of teeth. They form the
bulk of the occlusal surfaces of posterior teeth, and the
incisal portion of canine crowns.
 Tubercles : Rounded or pointed projections found on the
crowns of teeth. They are also variable in size and shape,
but are usually smaller than cusps. Tubercles are often
thought of as minicusps, and their most likely location is
on the lingual surface of maxillary anterior teeth, especially
deciduous canines.
 Cingulum (plural-cingula) : A large rounded eminence
on the lingual surface of all permanent and deciduous
anterior teeth, which encompasses the entire cervical third
of the lingual surface.
 Ridges : Linear and usually convex elevations on the
surface of the crowns of teeth, which are named according
to their location.
 Marginal ridges : The linear elevations which are found at
the mesial and distal terminations of the occlusal surface of
posterior teeth. They are also found on anterior teeth, but
are less prominent.
 Cusp ridges : Each cusp has four cusp ridges extending in
different directions (mesial, distal, facial, lingual ) from its
tip. They vary in size, shape, and sharpness.
 Triangular ridges : Linear ridges which descend from the
tips of cusps of posterior teeth toward the central area of
the occlusal surface. In cross-section, they are more or less
triangular, hence their name.
Transverse ridge
Triangular ridge
pit
groove
 Transverse ridge : The combination of two triangular
ridges, which transversely cross the occlusal surface on a
posterior tooth to merge with each other. Thus a transverse
ridge is simply a union of two triangular ridges of a
posterior tooth, one from a buccal cusp and the other from
a lingual cusp.
 Oblique ridge : A special type of transverse ridge, which
crosses the occlusal surface of maxillary molars of both
dentitions in an oblique direction from the distobuccal to
mesiolingual cusps.
 Mamelons : Small, rounded projections of enamel which
are found in varying sizes and numbers on the incisal
ridges of recently erupted incisors.
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 Crown Depressions :
 Fossa (plural-fossae) : An irregular, usually rounded
depression, or concavity, on the crown of a tooth. There is
normally a rather large, shallow fossa on the lingual surface
of anterior teeth, while posterior teeth exhibit two or more
fossae of varying size and shape on the occlusal surface.
 Development (primary) groove : A groove, or line, which
usually denotes the coalescence of the primary parts, or
lobes, of the crown of a tooth.
 Supplemental (secondary) groove : An auxialliary
groove which branches from a developmental groove. Its
location is not related to the junction of primary tooth
parts, and it is normally not as deep as a primary groove.
 Pit : A small, depressed area where developmental grooves
join or terminate. A pit is usually found in the deepest
portion of a fossa.