Tooth movement into edentulous areas

Movement of teeth into edentulous spaces created by the loss of teeth within a dental arch was reported from three aspects: (1) movement of the tooth mesial to the space into the space, (2) movement of the tooth distal to the space into the space, and (3) movement of the tooth opposing the space into the space. Only small percentages of distal movement of or eruption of teeth into the edentulous space did occur, whereas the tooth distal to the space did move into the space in a high percentage of patients. However, movement of teeth into edentulous spaces was not inevitable, regardless of the relationship of the tooth to the space. The patients' age appeared to be a factor since tooth movement was much more pronounced in subjects who were relatively young at the time of extraction. In those subjects who had had a tooth extracted for at least five years, there seemed to be no statistical relationship between increasing severity of movement and years since extraction. This indicates that most movement must have occurred during the first five years after the tooth was removed.