DOCTORS in the country have removed a full-grown tooth from inside the nose of a 16-year-old Bahraini girl in a first of its kind procedure.
It was done by a medical team at the King Hamad University Hospital (KHUH) under the supervision of its Ear, Nose & Throat Consultant Professor Hesham Yousif Hassan.
The tooth – otherwise known as the Supernumerary tooth (ST) – was removed through a one-hour long surgical excision using optical fibre technology.
According to Prof Hassan, the patient reported to the ENT department with nasal obstruction and congestion, following which an endoscopy and Computerised Tomography (CT) scan were conducted.
“It revealed the presence of a foreign body with a density equivalent to that of a tooth and its structural composition in the middle of the nasal cavity confined between the nasal septum (divider between the nostrils) and the inferior turbinate (the finger-like projection in the nasal cavity),” he told the GDN.
“We performed the surgical excision operation using optical fibre technology, which took one hour. It was successfully completed without any complications, and the patient has recovered.”
Prof Hassan said the foreign body was very similar to a tooth.
“The microscopic analysis categorically confirmed this, indicating the presence of the so-called supernumerary tooth which is rare with a global rate ranging from one case in every 100 to 1,000 people in general.
Supernumerary teeth (ST) is a dental anomaly characterised by the existence of excessive number of teeth in relation to the normal dental formula. This condition is commonly seen with several congenital genetic disorders such as Gardner’s syndrome, cleidocranial dysostosis and cleft lip and palate.
“A tooth can grow anywhere as in a gum on the dental arch, but it is very rare inside the nose, far away from the dental arch,” said Prof Hassan.
“And that too in the middle of the nose, it is very rare – I have performed one such in the maxillary sinus area years ago, but inside the nasal cavity, it is the first time.
“It was complex to do the procedure in such a narrow space – we had to push the tooth to the back of the nose and pull it out from the other side.”
He added that the patient was not in pain but in agony, with major nasal blockage and discharge, adding that the surgery did not leave any visible mark on the face.
The tooth, he said, must have been there since birth, but was noticed only after the child grew up.
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