Which Angle Class corresponds to the distobuccal cusp occupying the embrasure between the maxillary second premolar and first molar?

• A. Class I
• B. Class II
• C. Class III
• D. Functional Cusps

Answer: (C)

In occlusion classification, you judge the overall jaw relationship by where a key posterior cusp sits relative to the opposing teeth. The distobuccal cusp of the maxillary first molar is one of the posterior cusps, and its position tells you how the upper and lower arches relate front-to-back. When that cusp occupies the embrasure between the maxillary second premolar and the first molar, it indicates the upper posterior dentition sits comparatively behind the lower dentition — a forward-positioned mandible relative to the maxilla. That pattern matches a Class III relationship, where the lower jaw is ahead of the upper jaw.

So this cusp-embrasure arrangement is characteristic of Class III. The other options describe different spatial relationships (normal/Class I, or a more retrusive mandible relative to the maxilla in Class II) and don’t fit this embrasure position. The term Functional Cusps refers to which cusps contact during function, not the overall molar relationship.