Boy has jawdropping 526 teeth extracted

Unerupted teeth (above) embedded in a tumor lodged in the jaw of a seven-year-old boy (left) being extracted in a hospital in Chennai, India.
Unerupted teeth (above) embedded in a tumor lodged in the jaw of a seven-year-old boy being extracted in a hospital in Chennai, India. PHOTO: REUTERS
Unerupted teeth embedded in a tumor lodged in the jaw of a seven-year-old boy (above) being extracted in a hospital in Chennai, India. PHOTO: REUTERS

CHENNAI • Indian doctors removed a tumor with a record number of 526 teeth inside a seven-year-old boy's mouth, the medical team in the southern city of Chennai said on Friday.

The 200g growth was lodged in the boy's lower right jaw, said Mr Senthilnathan P., a doctor at Saveetha Dental College and Hospital, where the operation was performed.

"He had come to us complaining about a swelling in his jaw," Mr Senthilnathan told Reuters, saying the boy has had a history of swelling since he was three.

"It was a benign tumor, which we removed and found that it was embedded with hundreds of unerupted teeth," he added of the operation last month, saying Indian doctors believed the number of teeth was a global medical record.

A tumor with unerupted teeth is typically a genetic condition that can also be in some cases caused by external factors such as trauma to a tooth, the doctor said.

"The boy recovered very well and got discharged in three days," he added.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on August 04, 2019, with the headline Boy has jawdropping 526 teeth extracted. Subscribe