The term impacted has various meanings to people who attempt to define it. The common definitions of impaction are:
- Delayed eruption beyond that normally expected in a particular individual (Aitasalo et al., 1972; Gensior and Strauss, 1974; Ohman and Ohman, 1980).
-Impacted tooth is the tooth when contact with an adjacent object, such as tooth or bone, acts as physical barrier to the eruption of the tooth. (Adamson, KT, 1952; Blum, 1923; Hitchin, 1951; Shafer et al., 2012).
-Archer (1975) defined impaction as ''The tooth which fails to erupt in oral cavity in its functional position and which has lost its further potential for eruption". He also defined the impacted tooth as a tooth which is completely or partially un erupted, and is positioned against another tooth, bone or soft tissue so that
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Lindauer et al (1992) defined a canine as being impacted after complete root development or if the contra lateral tooth was erupted for at least 6 months with complete root formation. Mason et al (2001) defined an impacted tooth as one ''whose eruption is considerably delayed, and for which there is clinical or radiographic evidence that further eruption may not take place. Kuftinec and Shapira, (1995) defined impaction as a condition in which a tooth is embedded in the alveolus so that its eruption is prevented or the tooth is locked in position by bone or by adjacent tooth.
Diagnosis of Impacted Maxillary Canine:
Early detection of impacted maxillary canines may reduce treatment time, complexity, and cost. Ideally, patients should be examined by the age of 8 or 9 years to determine whether the canine displaced from a normal position in the alveolus and assess the potential for impaction(Shapira and Kuftinec, 1998). The diagnosis of impacted maxillary canine is based on both clinical investigations which include visual inspection and palpation, and radiographic examinations.
Clinical