Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A.

Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Development and Growth of the Jaws

Development of the jaws begins early during the development of the deciduous teeth at 6
week I.U.L.

Development of the Mandible

- The mandible is the largest, strongest & lowest
bone of face.

- It horseshoe shaped body which is curved

horizontally.

The mandible form from 3 main parts:

i) Body of the mandible

ii) Ramus

iii) Alveolar bone

Prenatal development of mandible

The mandible develops in the mandibular process of the first arch.

39
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It preceded by the development of Meckel’s cartilage which represents the primitive

vertebrate mandible.

- The Meckel’s cartilages extends as a solid hyaline cartilagenous rod surrounded by

fibrocellular capsule. The two cartilages of each side extends from otic capsule to
midsymphysis. The cartilages of each side of mandible don’t meet at midline. It separates
by thin band of mesenchyme.

The mandibular branch of trigeminal nerve has a close relationship to Meckel’s cartilages,
which act a skeletal support to them. At the beginning 2/3 of the cartilage the mandibular
nerve divides into:

1- Lingual nerve which passes forward on the medial side of the rod.
2- The inferior alveolar nerve which lie lateral to the upper margin of the rod, which
further divided into incisive and mental branches.

-The development of the mandible occurs in the three steps:

1- Development of its body.

2- Development of its alveolar process.

3-development of its ramus.

40
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1- Development of the body of the mandible:

-It start to appear as a band of dense fibrocellular tissue on the lateral side of inferior
alveolar and incisive nerves.

- At about 7 week of I.U.L, a center of intramembranous ossification appears in

condensed band at angle formed by incisive and mental nerves. From this center of
ossification bone formation spreads

1- Anteriorly (forward) – to form a trough beneath the incisive nerve extending to

midline, the trough is converted into canal

2- Posteriorly (backward)-

a- below the mental nerve forming a groove, then surrounds the nerve forming
the mental foramen

b- Where mandibular nerve divided into lingual and inferior alveolar branch.
Bone formation spreads rapidly and surrounds the inferior alveolar nerve to form
mandibular canal.

• Intramembranous ossification spreads in anterior and posterior direction forms the

Body of the mandible.

• Anteriorly bone extends towards midline and comes in approximation with similar
bone forming on opposite side.

• These two bones remain separated by fibrous tissue mental symphysis untill shortly
after birth.

41
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2-Development of the alveolar

process:

The median and lateral plates

mandibular body grow upward to
contain the developing tooth
germs.
The tooth germs come to lie in
another trough of bone.
This trough is divided by septa
between its two plates to form
separate compartment or alveoli,
each contains a deciduous tooth
germ. Thus the alveolar process is formed. The alveolar process grows at a rapid rate
during tooth eruption.

3- Development of the ramus:

A. The backward extension of the mandible to form the ramus is produced by a spread
of ossification from the body, behind and above the mandilular foremen,

B. The ramus and its processes are mapped by extension of fibrocechular condensation.

C. The formation of bone in this tissue occurs rapidly so that the coronoid and condylar
processes are to a large extent ossified by the 10th week.

Further growth of these processes and subsequent growth of the mandible take place by the
appearance of three cartilaginous centers called secondary or accessory cartilages.

42
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Secondary or Accessory Cartilages:

- Three secondary cartilage develops:

I. Condylar cartilage – largest and appear beneath the fibrous articular layer of future
condyle.

II. Coronoid cartilage - seen associated with coronoid process.

III. Symphyseal cartilage – in the mandibular symphysis region.

Condylar Process:
- Appears during 12th week of I.U.L

- Develops from condylar cartilage appear as separate area of mesenchymal condensation

along developing mandible.

- This area develop in cone-shaped cartilage mass.

- The mass of cartilage is quickly converted to bone by endochondral (within the material
of a cartilage) ossification.

- The remnant of cartilage persists until 20 years of age. It give rise to the head and neck
of the condyle and the posterior half of the ramus above the mandibular foramen.

43
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Coronoid Process:
- It appears after the condylar cartilage at about 14th week I.U.L at the anterior border and
top of coronoid process.

- Coronoid cartilage become incorporated into expanding intramembranous bone of ramus

and disappear before birth.

Symphyseal Cartilage:
- It appears after the coronid cartilage at about 16th week I.U.L at the symphyseal end of
each half of the bony mandible.

- These cartilage are separated from each other by connective tissue of the symphysis. They
enable the mandible in its growth in width.

- Osseous union of the two halves of the mandible occurs shortly after the birth and is
completed at the end of the first or beginning of the second year.

Mental ossicles:
- These are 2 or 4 nodules of cartilage appear in fibrous tissue of the symphysis at 7th month
I.U.L.

- Mental ossicles enlarge and fuse with one another and with the mandibular body at the
end of first year after birth. They form the mental protuberance.

Growth of the mandible:

The mandible grows by several processes including:

1- Secondary(accessory ) cartilages:

44
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 The most important and major site of mandibular growth center after birth is the
condylar cartilage.
 Formation of bone within condyle causes mandible rami to grow upward &
backward
 Displacing entire mandible in Downward & forward direction.
- Growth of condylar cartilage increases length & height of mandible.

2- Subperiosteal bone formation: on all surfaces of the body and ramus of the
mandible, this increase the overall size of the mandible.
3- Alveolar process:
-Alveolar growth occurs
around tooth buds. As teeth
develop & begin to erupt,
alv. Process increases in
size & height. Continued

45
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

growth of alveolar Bone increases height of

mandibuar body.

4-Growth at ramus

Bone deposition (++) at posterior border of Ramus

and Bone resorption (--) at anterior border of
Ramus leads to anterior-posterior growth of the
mandible and provide space for the developing and
erupting permanent molars.

5- Deposition of the bone at the lower border of

the body of the mandible, this increase its height.

6- Deposition of bone at the angle of the mandible on outside with resorption from the
opposite side, these increase the transverse distance posteriorly.

7- Bone formation due to development, growth and function of muscles of mastication,

tongue and expansion of the oral and pharyngeal cavities (muscular tension stimulates
bone deposition).

8- Development of the chin which influenced by sexual and genetic factors, also mental
ossicles are responsible for mental protuberance.

46
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Development of the maxilla:

-The maxilla consist of two bones:

1- The maxilla proper

2- The premaxilla.

Development of the maxilla proper

- It develops in the maxillary process of the mandibular arch by intramembranous
ossification.
- The center of ossification first appears in a band of fibrocellular tissue which lies
outer side of the cartilage of the nasal capsule.
- The ossification center lies above that part of the canine from which develops the
enamel organ of the canine tooth germ.
- Early in development, the developing maxilla forms a body trough for the infra
orbital nerve
- From the center of the ossification spreads in different direction as follow:
1- Backward, below the orbit and toward the zygomatic bone to form the zygomatic
process of the maxilla.
2- Forward, toward the premaxilla.
- By backward and forward extension of ossification a bony trough for the infra-
orbital nerve is formed. This trough will transform into canal which opens to outside
as the infra-orbital foramen.
3-Upward, to form the frontal process of the maxilla
4- Downward, to form the outer alveolar plate.

47
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- The inner alveolar plate develops later than the outer plate. It develops from the
junction of palatal process and the body of the maxilla on the inner (palatal) side of
dental lamina.

5-Innerward, toward the midline into the palatine processes to form the hard palate

- The trough of bone formed by the outer and inner alveolar plates contains the
developing tooth germ is divided by septa into alveolai, thus the alveolar bone
formed.

48
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Growth of the maxilla:

The maxilla grows by several processes including:

1-Sutural growth: The maxilla articulates with the bones of the skull by sutures. There
are 4 main sutures contribute to growth of the maxilla.

These sutures are parallel to each other and directed from upward anteriorly to downward
posteriorly. So, growth at these sutures will shift the maxilla anteriorly and downward.
These sutures are:

a- Fronto-maxillary suture: between frontal process of the maxilla and the frontal bone.

b- Zygomatico-maxillary suture: between the maxilla and the zygomatic bone.

c- Zygomatico-temporal suture: between the temporal process of the zygomatic bone and
zygomatic process of the temporal bone.

d. Pterygo-palatine suture: between the pterygoid process of the sphenoid bone and the
pyramidal process of the palatine bone.

-Sutural growth also occurs in fifth suture called median palatine suture which contributes
to growth in the width of the palate (lateral growth).

- Sutural growth continues until 10 years of age then become less significant.

2- Subperiosteal bone formation throughout life is a main factor for overall growth of the
maxilla.

3- Bone apposition at the tuberosity of the maxilla increases the antero-posterior

dimension of the upper jaw.

49
Development and Growth of the Jaws Oral Histology Ass. Prof. Dr/ Baleegh A. Alkadasi
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4-Development and growth of the alveolar process and eruption of the teeth will add to
the height of the maxilla, while eruption of the upper permanent molars add to the length
of the dental arch.

50