The 'mandibular lateral incisor' is the
tooth located distally (away from the midline of the
face) from both
mandibular central incisors of the
mouth and mesially (toward the midline of the face) from both
manibular canines. As with all
incisors, their function is for
shearing or cutting food during
mastication, commonly known as chewing. There are no
cusps on the teeth. Instead, the surface area of the tooth used in eating is called an incisal ridge or incisal edge. Though relatively the same, there are some minor differences between the
deciduous (baby) mandibular lateral incisor and that of the
permanent mandibular lateral incisor.
In the
universal system of notation, the deciduous mandibular lateral incisors are designated by a letter written in uppercase. The right deciduous mandibular lateral incisor is known as "Q", and the left one is known as "N". The
international notation has a different system of notation. Thus, the right deciduous mandibular lateral incisor known as "82", and the left one is known as "72".
In the universal system of notation, the permanent mandibular lateral incisors are designated by a number. The right permanent mandibular lateral incisor is known as "26", and the left one is known as "23". In the
Palmer notation, a number is used in conjunction with a symbol designating in which quadrant the tooth is found. For this tooth, the left and right lateral incisors would have the same number, "2", but the right one would have the symbol, "┐", over it, while the left one would have, "┌". The international notation has a different numbering system than the previous two, and the right permanent mandibular lateral incisor is known as "42", and the left one is known as "32".
References
★ Ash, Major M. and Stanley J. Nelson, 2003. ''Wheeler’s Dental Anatomy, Physiology, and Occlusion.'' 8th edition.