Evaluation of elementary education teachers' knowledge on avulsion and tooth replantation

Introduction: Dental trauma care emergency is very important issue, especially in cases of avulsion and it is crucial for the prognosis. A preventive-educational approach had not been effective and there are many failures in handling dental trauma, mainly by lack of knowledge by health professionals, teachers and lay people. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge of 89 teachers about dental trauma. Material and methods: A questionnaire divided into three parts containing questions about the emergency procedures in cases of dental trauma was applied. Results: Only 13% of teachers would replant the tooth in the socket, and only 7% said they would put the tooth in some liquid and 58% would store in a piece of paper, cloth or clean container. In relation to replantation, 75% reported that they would hold the tooth by the crown, 79% reported that first they would refer to the dentist, and 80% thought that the treatment had to be immediate. With regard to tooth preparation, 46% would keep it in saline, 24% in water, and only 11% in milk. Concerning to the avulsed tooth, only 15% correctly answered that they would replant the avulsed tooth and then referred to the dentist. Conclusion: It was concluded that the knowledge of teachers must be improved by educational and preventive campaigns on management of traumatized teeth.