Incompletely Closed Tomes' Process Pits on the Enamel Surface along the Perikymata

Abstract

Usually, Tomes' process pits on the intact enamel surfaces show a circular or a cross-sectioned prism-shaped outline. In this scanning electron microscopic study, we found that smaller Tomes' process pits showed various irregular outlines including incompletely closed pits on the supracervical enamel surface in a premolar tooth. The crystal density in these pit margins was lower than that of the surrounding enamel. These results suggest that the final matrix deposition by ameloblasts occasionally continues for a short time after the formation of Tomes' process pits which have shown a usual outline. Such a formation differs from the formation of a small dome-shaped projection within the pit.