Photos:Boy has 232 teeth surgically removed

Abuja - A normal human has 32 teeth, 16 on
top, 16 on the bottom. Throughout their
lives people often have to have teeth
removed for a range of reasons. Infection is
a common, as is teeth putting too much
pressure on those around them.
The problem with Ashik Gavai, though, is that
he just had too many. Way too many. 200 to
many, to be precise.

The reason for the 17-year old's hyperactive
gums was, in fact, a kind of tumour. A very
rare tumour that had stumped the local
doctors in his village and was only diagnosed
when the boy travelled to the Indian capital,
Mumbai.

There, doctors determined that he had been
suffering for 18 months from a complex
composite odontoma. In this case a single
gum produces numerous teeth, instead of
just the one it's supposed to.
While not life-threatening, the condition can
be very painful as the excess teeth push
against one another and the bones of the
jaw.

The previous record was just 37 teeth,
Gavai's 232 shattered this record. Most of
the teeth were not fully formed, but small,
pearl-like objects encapsulated in a pocket
deep in the lower jaw.

The dentist in charge, Dr Sunanda Dhiware,
was very excited by the case and claimed
that she had not seen anything like it before
in her 30-year career as a dentist.