Diagnostic Aspects of an Included Third Molar in an 88-Year-Old Patient: A Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Included third molars in elderly patients are quite rare in dental practice, and therefore easily misdiagnosed, because these teeth are usually extracted in youth. Additional challenges to correctly diagnosing such a dental condition, and its associated complications, arise from frequent co-morbidities in elderly patients, and from difficult communication with the patient. We report a case of an 88-year-old female patient, who presented in the dental emergency room complaining of a discomfort caused by the sharp edges of her lower incisors, and requesting their extraction; the final diagnosis, of suppurated pericoronitis at tooth 48, was concluded based on the clinical elements and X-ray examination.

Keywords

• third molar
• dental inclusion
• elderly patient
• pericoronitis
• operculectomy
• mandibular wisdom tooth