Corpus: Canine

The canine tooth or dens caninus' (plural: "dentes canini") is the third tooth in each quadrant of the human dentition.

The term "dens caninus", i.e. canine tooth, comes from the similarity to the canine tooth in dogs. "Eye tooth" is an older term. It comes from the fact that the root of the upper canine tooth reaches close to the orbit and therefore inflammation of the root is characterised by swelling and redness under the eye.

The canines are unicuspid teeth that have a divided cutting edge as a common feature, which forms a chewing tip. The upper ones are larger than the lower ones and usually have two roots, while the lower ones usually have only one root. The canines are also the longest teeth in the dentition.