Impacted Canine Teeth
 The word "impacted" tends to bring wisdom teeth to mind. Wisdom teeth are indeed the most commonly impacted teeth, but they are not the only ones. Any tooth can become impacted, and after the wisdom teeth, canines are the next most likely.
Canines are worth treating rather than removing. They have the longest roots of any tooth, carry a large share of the biting load, guide the jaw as it moves from side to side, and support the corner of the lip. Because of that, an impacted canine is usually brought into position rather than extracted, which calls for a more involved surgical approach and close coordination with your orthodontist.
If you have been told you have an impacted canine, or suspect you might, visit Oral Surgery Specialists of Buda. Our team will answer your questions and recommend the right course of treatment.
The Causes of Impacted Canines
A tooth is impacted when it fails to erupt through the gums. This happens in two ways:
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Fully impacted – the tooth remains completely buried beneath the gumline and within the jawbone
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Partially impacted – part of the tooth has emerged, but the rest remains trapped under the gum |
Impacted teeth rarely resolve on their own and usually require surgical intervention. More on impaction generally is available on our impacted teeth page.
Canines are the last of the front teeth to erupt, typically arriving around age eleven. They may become impacted when there is not enough room in the arch because of crowding, or when a baby tooth is retained past the point it should have been lost. When the primary tooth does not fall out on schedule, the permanent canine is forced to find another route and may attempt to emerge in an unusual position, such as behind the neighboring teeth or, rarely, through the roof of the mouth.
Impacted Canine Diagnosis
Early detection produces the best outcome. The American Association of Orthodontists recommends a first orthodontic evaluation, including x-rays, by age seven. That may seem early, but it allows the developing permanent teeth to be monitored and an impaction to be caught before eruption becomes a problem.
Canines have long roots and take longer to erupt than most teeth. When impacted, they often deviate from their normal path, pushing against adjacent teeth or crossing over their roots. Left alone, an impacted canine can resorb the root of a neighboring incisor, which is why we image these cases carefully with cone beam CT before recommending treatment.
Exposure and Bonding: How an Impacted Canine Is Treated
The standard treatment is a procedure called exposure and bonding, performed by our oral surgeons and completed by your orthodontist over the months that follow.
The Surgical Appointment
We lift a small flap of gum tissue to uncover the crown of the impacted canine and, where the eruption path is blocked, remove a small amount of overlying bone. An orthodontic bracket attached to a fine gold chain is bonded directly to the tooth, and the tissue is sutured around it with dissolvable stitches, leaving the chain accessible.
Whether the tooth is covered again depends on where it sits. A canine impacted toward the palate is generally closed over, with only the chain exposed. One impacted toward the lip or cheek may be left open so it can erupt through the opening as traction is applied.
The procedure is performed under local anesthetic, with sedation available for patients who would prefer it.
Recovery
Most patients are back to normal activity within a day or two. Expect some swelling and mild soreness for several days, and keep to a soft diet while the tissue heals. Our page on what to eat after oral surgery covers this in detail. The chain will be noticeable in the mouth during treatment, and both bracket and chain are removed once the tooth is in place.
Orthodontic Guidance
Two to three weeks after surgery, once initial healing is underway, your orthodontist attaches the chain to your braces and begins applying light continuous force. That gentle traction draws the canine along a corrected path into its place in the arch. The movement is slow by design, and the full process usually takes six to eighteen months depending on the depth of the impaction.
When Exposure Is Not the Right Option
Not every impacted canine can be saved. Where the tooth has fused to the surrounding bone, where its own root has resorbed, or where it sits in a position that cannot be corrected, extraction may be the better long-term choice. The space can then be closed orthodontically or restored with a dental implant once growth is complete. We will tell you plainly which situation applies before any treatment is planned.
Impacted Canine Treatment in Buda, TX
If you or your child has an impacted canine, treating it early minimizes complications and improves the odds of guiding the tooth successfully into position.
Call Oral Surgery Specialists of Buda at (737) 335-0017 to schedule an evaluation, or request an appointment online.
FAQs
Can an impacted canine correct itself?
Rarely. Once a canine has deviated from its eruption path it generally will not correct on its own, and waiting increases the chance it damages the roots of neighboring teeth. Early evaluation gives the widest range of options.
Who performs which part of the treatment?
Our oral surgeons perform the exposure and bond the bracket and chain to the tooth. Your orthodontist then applies the traction that guides it into position over the following months. The two work from a shared treatment plan.
How long does the whole process take?
The surgery itself is a single appointment. Guiding the tooth into place usually takes six to eighteen months of orthodontic treatment afterward, depending on how deeply the canine was impacted.
Can adults have an impacted canine treated?
Yes, though it is more predictable in adolescence. In adults the tooth is more likely to have fused to the surrounding bone, which can make guided movement impossible. Imaging tells us which situation applies before treatment is planned. |
