Prevalence of Distal Caries in Mandibular Second Molar Due to Impacted Third Molar.

Introduction: A tooth is said to be impacted if it does not reach the occlusal plane even after two-thirds root formation. The aetiology of impacted teeth is varied and multi-factorial. Significant problems associated with impacted teeth include trismus, infection, cervical caries of second molars.

Prevalence of Impacted Molar Teeth among Saudi Population in Asir Region, Saudi Arabia - A Retrospective Study of 3 Years.

Aim: To report the prevalence of impacted third molars according to the age, gender and type among Saudi population.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective study involved 3800 panoramic radiographs of subjects aged 18 to 45 years who presented to the College of Dentistry, King Khalid University, Abha, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for oral care during the period from February 2009 to February 2011. Data collected was entered into a spreadsheet (Excel 2000; Microsoft, US) and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.