The interdental plate refers to the bone-filled mesial-distal region between the teeth.[1] The word "interdental" is a combination of "inter" + "dental" (meaning "between the teeth") which originated in approximately 1870.[2] In paleobiology, the presence or absence of the interdental plate can determine the place of an animal in the evolutionary scale, and paleontologists use the interdental plate when trying to classify a new specimen. Thecodont reptiles and theropod dinosaur fossils have an interdental plate, whereas acrodont reptiles such as Sphenodontia do not.[3] Its presence in Archaeopteryx, an extinct avialan, resulted in the proposal of the dinosaur-bird connection.[citation needed]

The term can also be used to refer to a manufactured object designed to be placed or worn between the teeth. An example would be a dental prosthetic designed to prevent contact between the teeth while the wearer is sleeping.[4] A 2004 patent relates to an apparatus designed to measure the pressure exerted by the tongue as a means of diagnosing ailments related to swallowing.[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ Budney, LISA A.; Caldwell, Michael W.; Albino, Adriana (2006). "TOOTH SOCKET HISTOLOGY IN THE CRETACEOUS SNAKE DINILYSIA, WITH A REVIEW OF AMNIOTE DENTAL ATTACHMENT TISSUES". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 26: 138–145. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2006)26[138:TSHITC]2.0.CO;2. ISSN 0272-4634.
  2. ^ "Interdental". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
  3. ^ Tooth Implantation Archived 2007-07-01 at the Wayback Machine. Palaeos.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-13.
  4. ^ Aguglia, U; Gambardella, A; Quattrone, A (1991). "Sleep-induced masticatory myoclonus: a rare parasomnia associated with insomnia". Sleep. 14 (1): 80–2. PMID 1811324.
  5. ^ US 6702765, Robbins, Jo Anne; Bomsztyk, Elan D. & Heppner, Angela L. et al., "Apparatus for measuring tongue/hard palate contact pressure", published 2004-03-09, assigned to Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation 
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