Aim: To assess the prevalence of torus palatinus (TP) in relation to age, gender and site among Saudi people in Abha.Materials and Methods: A total of 326 subjects, including 150 male and167 female, were included in the study. A self-administered quisstionaire followed by clinical examination was performed. The data was collected and analyzed in excel spread sheet. Results were displayed in tables and bar charts.Results: The total number of patients with torus palatinus were 3 (0.92%) among the total 326 patients screened. The prevalence of torus palatinus was more frequent in women than in men. Age group 19-45 years had the maximum prevalence of torus palatinus and all the patients presented with flat shaped tori.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp

Master Luqman

MG Abdul Aziz

Mohammad Ajmal

T Yahya

English

eDENT Journals

Prevalence of torus palatinus Among Saudi population in Abha  
                                                                          
Luqman M1, Abdulaziz MG2, Yahya T3 , Ajmal M4 
 
 
 
 
Introduction   
   
Torus palatinus (TP) may be defined as an exostosis of the hard palate 
localized along the median palatine suture, involving both the processi palatini and 
the os palatinum. Tori are nodular protuberances of mature bone, the exact 
designation of which depends on anatomic location 
1
.It contains compact and 
cancellous bone and is formed by the hypertrophy of the spongy and oral compact 
layers, the nasal compact layer remain unchanged 
2
. It is generally accepted as an 
anatomical variation rather than a pathological condition 
3. 
Torus palatinus is usually 
asymptomatic, grows slowly and is more common during the second and third 
decades of life. Although, not pathologically significant, torus palatinus very often 
needs surgical removal as it causes chronic trauma, interfere with oral function or with 
the replacement of a denture base or framework 
3
. 
Materials & Methods 
A detailed self-administered questionnaire was designed.  A total of 326 dental 
patients who visited the dental clinics at College of Dentistry, maxillofacial clinic of Asir 
Central Hospital  and Asir dental center  were included in this study. All these patients 
were examined for the presence of Torus palatinus. The subjects were stratified into 
five age groups: 18- 29, 30 -39, 40 -49, 50- 59 and 60 years and older. The 
examination of the Torus palatinus was performed by clinical inspection and palpation. 
Patients with questionable Torus palatinus were exluded from the study. For the 
diagnosis, Torus palatinus was defined as a raised bony exostosis in the midline of the 
hard palate.The shape of Torus palatinus was classified as flat, nodular, spindle and 
lobular. 
Data collected was entered into a spreadsheet (Excel 2000; Microsoft, US) and 
analyzed subsequently using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16.0. 
The prevalence of torus palatinus in relation to age, gender 
    IJCDS • NOVEMBER, 2011 • 2(4) © 2011  Int. Journal of Clinical Dental Science 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
ABOUT THE AUTHORS 
 
1. Luqman M,  
Assistant Professor, Oral 
Pathology, College of 
Dentistry, King Khalid 
University, Abha, KSA 
2. Abdulaziz MG,  
Intern, Oral Patholgy, 
College of Dentistry, King 
Khalid University, Abha, 
KSA 
3. Yahya T, 
 Intern, Oral Patholgy, 
College of Dentistry, King 
Khalid University, Abha, 
KSA 
4. Ajmal M, 
Assistant Professor, Oral 
Medicine & Radiology, 
College of Dentistry, King 
Khalid University, Abha, 
KSA 
 
 
Address for Correspondence: 
 
Dr. Master Luqman 
 
Assistant Professor, 
Oral Pathology, 
College of Dentistry, 
King Khalid University, 
Abha, KSA 
e-mail: 
drluqman@yahoo.com  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Abstract      
                         
Aim: To assess the prevalence of torus palatinus (TP) in relation to age, gender and site among 
Saudi people in Abha. 
Materials and Methods: A total of 326 subjects, including 150 male and167 female, were 
included in the study. A self-administered quisstionaire followed by clinical examination was 
performed. The data was collected and analyzed in excel spread sheet. Resul ts were displayed 
in tables and bar charts. 
Results: The total number of patients with torus palatinus were 3 (0.92%) among the total 326 
patients screened. The prevalence of torus palatinus was more frequent in women than in 
men. Age group 19-45 years had the maximum prevalence of torus palatinus and all the 
patients presented with flat shaped tori.  
                                                                                                                                 
KEYWORDS: palate, torus palatinus, exostosis  
 
101 
RESEARCH 
   IJCDS • NOVEMBER, 2011 • 2(4) © 2011  Int. Journal of Clinical Dental Science 
Table I: Torus Palatinus in relation to Age Group 
 
 
 
 
 
Age Group 
 
 
Total 
Number of Patients 
 
Number of Tori Percentage of Tori(%) 
 
1 (20-25 years) 
140 
43% 
 
0 
 
0 
 
2 (26 -30 years) 
 
37 
11.3% 
3 100% 
 
3 (31 -35 years) 
 
 
104 
32% 
0 0 
 
4 (36 – 40 years) 
 
44 
13.5% 
0 0 
 
 
Total 
 
325 
100% 
3 
100% 
100 
100.0% 
 
 
 
Table II: p value for Tori Occurrence 
 
 
 Value Df Asymp. Sig. (2-
sided) 
(p value) 
Pearson Chi-Square 9.699 3 0.021 
 
 
 
 
Table III: Torus Palatinus in relation to Gender 
 
 
 
Gender 
Tori Occurrence 
 Percentage 
 
Male 
150 46% 
 
Female 
 
 
175 
54% 
 
Total 
 
325 100% 
 
                                                          P value 0.200 
 
102 
   IJCDS • NOVEMBER, 2011 • 2(4) © 2011  Int. Journal of Clinical Dental Science 
The prevalence of torus palatinus in relation to age, 
gender and type was assessed and displayed by 
frequency and percentage. The p value was analyzed by 
using the Pearson Chi-square test. 
 
Results 
 
The study sample comprised of 325 patients. A total of 3 
torus palatinus were identified (0.9%) (p=0.021) (Table1 ). 
The male to female ratio with torus palatinus was (1:2) 
and the ratio for patients with torus palatinus was 
(108:1). Age group 2 and 3 (i.e., 30 to 39 years and 40-
49)(Table I) had the highest prevalence of torus palatinus 
(100%) and this decreased to nil prevalence with 
increasing age. 
Table 2 shows distribution of torus palatinus according 
to the site. 66.6% prevalence of torus palatinus was 
found at the pre-molar – molar region followed by 33.3% 
in the molar region. There was no occurrence of torus 
palatinus at the anterior teeth region. 
Table 3 shows distribution of torus palatinus according 
to the shape. All the three cases (100%) were flat in 
shape with absence of other shapes. 
 
Discussion 
 
Torus palatinus is a bony protrusion on the palate. 
Palatal tori are usually present on the midline of the hard 
palate.
[4]
 Most palatal tori are less than 2 cm in diameter, 
but their size can change throughout life. Palatal tori are 
more common in Asian and Inuit populations, and twice 
more common in females. Although some research 
suggest palatal tori to be an autosomal dominant trait, it 
is generally believed that palatal tori are caused by 
several factors.
4
 They are more common in early adult 
life and can increase in size. In some older people, the 
size of the tori may decrease due to bone resorption. 
Sometimes, the tori are categorized by their appearance. 
Arising as a broad base and a smooth surface, flat tori 
are located on the midline of the palate and extend 
symmetrically to either side. Spindle tori have a ridge 
located at their midline. Nodular tori have multiple bony 
growths that have their own base. Lobular tori have 
multiple bony growths with a common base. 
Palatal tori are usually a clinical finding with no 
treatment necessary.
5
 It is possible for ulcers to form on 
the area of the tori due to repeated trauma. Also, the tori 
may complicate the fabrication of dentures. 
In the present study, only 3 torus palatini were found 
among the 325 patients screened with a prevalence of 
only 0.92%(p=0.021) which was statistically significant. A 
Turkish study  performed in 80 dry skulls, reported a 
high prevalence (45.4%) of TP. Cagirankaya et al., 
6
 
reported a prevalence of 20.9% in consecutive 253 
subjects (17–49 years old) they screened. The TP 
prevalence in our study (0.92%) was lower in comparison 
to most of the other studies
2 . 
A similar low TP prevalence 
was found in a study conducted in Gizan region, Saudi 
Arabia (1.4%)
7
 . The results in this study are closest to 
our study and the geographical area of this study is in 
the same province of our study. These two results reveal 
that the racial differences are much more important for 
the prevalence. 
In the present study, the TP prevalence was significantly 
higher in females (1.1%) than in males (0.6%). The 
findings of our study regarding the prevalence of TP in 
relation to gender are consistent with the results in other 
studies
3,7
. There is no specific explanation for this 
difference, but genetics may be suggested as a major 
factor. 
Earlier studies
8,9,10
 revealed higher TP prevalence’s during 
the second and third decades of life, whereas in our 
present study, it was higher during the 4
th
 decade(30-39 
years of age group). 
In the present study, most of TP was smaller than 2 cm 
(66.6%), and located in premolar-molar area (66.6%). 
Yildiz et al 
11
.,reported that 91.5% of TP smaller than 2 
cm, and 62% located in molar area in 5–15 age group. 
King and More
12
 who studied 400 individuals from the 
United States and United Kingdom reported that 67% of 
TP smaller than 2 cm.  Therefore, the prevalence of Torus 
Palatinus is variable according to the geographic 
location which can be ascertained to the ethinicity. 
 
Conclusion 
 
a) The prevalence of totus palatinus is low 
b) Females had a higher prevalence of tori than 
males with more prevalence in the fourth 
decade of life. 
c) Premolar-molar region of the hard palate 
was the most common site of tori with flat 
shape as the common clinical form 
d) Long term prospective studies are required 
for better assessment of the prevalence of 
torus palatinus. 
 
References  
 
1. Regezi JA, Sciubba JJ. Clinico-pathologic correlations. 
Philadelphia: WB Saunders. Oral pathology 1994;376–
378. 
2. Vidic B. Incidence of torus palatinus in Yugoslav skulls. 
J Dent Res. 1966;45:1511–1515.  
3. Woo JK. Torus palatinus. Am J Phys Anthropol 
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4. Neville BW, Damn DD, Allen CM, Bouquot JE. Oral and 
maxillofacial pathology. 2nd ed. 2002;20.ISBN0-7216-
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5. Tori Mandibular,maxillary,Palatal Study guide for oral 
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6. Cagirankaya LB, Kansu O, Hatipoglu MG. Is torus 
palatinus a feature of a well-developed maxilla. Clin Anat 
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7. Salem.G, Holm SA, Fattah R, Basset S, Nasser C. 
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8. Bernaba JM. Morphology and incidence of torus 
palatinus and mandibularis in Brazilian Indians. J Dent 
Res 1977;56:499–501. 
9.  Apinhasmit W, Jainkittivong A, Swasdison S. Torus 
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Prevalence of Torus palatinus among Saudi population in Abha

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Prevalence of Torus palatinus among Saudi population in Abha

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