Laser surgical approach to impacted maxillary incisors: case series and brief review

OBJECTIVE: Report Authors' clinical experience on impacted maxillary incisors treatment with laser technology. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Studied population was composed by 6 male and 12 female undergoing orthodontic treatments for lack of eruption of 28 upper incisors; eight impacted teeth (4 patients) spontaneously erupted after orthodontic creation of the correct eruptive space. Twenty maxillary incisors were surgically exposed: in 5 patients seven un-erupted incisors were exposed through an apically positioned flap technique; in two patients a guided closed eruption technique was performed on a central and two lateral maxillary incisors; in seven patients laser exposure technique was applied on ten incisors. All impacted teeth resulted correctly aligned at the end of therapy. RESULTS: Impaction of incisors is not a frequent event in dental practice. The positioning of the incisors was obtained by creating the eruptive space and aligning the un-erupted teeth with orthodontic treatment or after removing any obstacle or after their exposure with different surgical methods. In all patients the treatment allowed the restoration of both the aesthetic and function aspect of the stomatognathic apparatus. CONCLUSIONS: In this case series, patients undergoing exposure of the dental crown using diode laser showed the best postoperative course.