12 



Bone Remodeling during Dental Eruption 

 and Shedding 



SURINDAR N. BHASKAR, Department of Dental and Oral rathology. 

 United States Army Institute of Dental Research, Walter Reed Army 

 Medical Center, Washington, D. C. 



THE process of physiologic resorption and apposition of bone tissue 

 in a hone is termed "modeling" or "remodeling" and it is an essential 

 part of osteogenesis. This process begins almost as soon as the pri- 

 mary centers of ossification of a bone are formed and continues 

 throughout life. During the active phase of bone growth, as for 

 example in the tibia of a child, modeling resorption occurs ver\' 

 rapidly, whereas in the adult or later periods of life it slows down. 

 Modeling of bones is species and organ specific, that is, it varies in 

 intensity and location from bone to bone as well as in the same 

 bone of different species. Whereas the process of endochondral as 

 well as intramembranous ossification is identical in different species, 

 the pattern of bone remodeling is markedly different. Thus, at the 

 cartilaginous model stage, the tibia of a dog and that of a monkey 

 may be very similar, but soon after the appearance of the ossifica- 

 tion centers and the beginning of remodeling, they quickly begin 

 to assume different shapes. This is also true for different bones in 

 the same skeleton. 



In addition to contributing to their morphogenesis, modeling is 

 also important in the functional adaptation of bones. This means that 



321 



