Common hamartomas of odontogenic epithelium and mesenchyme that contain dental hard tissues

Subtypes

1. Simple odontoma

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2. Compound odontoma

• Appear as numerous rudimentary teeth
• Common site: Anterior jaw, maxilla
• Dental tissues: enamel, dentine, cementum
• Present as lobulated appearance, with no definitive demarcations of separate tissues between individual “toothlets” or denticles

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3. Complex odontoma

• Amorphous conglomerations of hard tissues
• Incidental findings in mandibular molar area in female patients
• Site: Mandible > maxilla, posteriorly
• Radiopaque area with varying densities

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Management

• Surgical excision
• Simple enucleation
• No recurrence

NB:

• Almost always associated with a missing tooth/may develop from a supernumerary tooth germ
• May obstruct eruptions of neighboring teeth/may erupt into the mouth – infection, abscess formation
• May be associated with pathological conditions eg. Dentigerous cyst and displace teeth