Emergency treatment of orodental injuries: a review

There has been an increase in the incidence of injuries to the incisor teeth in the primary and permanent dentitions over the last decade; one study reported that roughly 35% of 9-year-old children will have damaged their teeth in some way. Much has been written about dental injuries, and there may be confusion about the appropriate emergency treatment for different types. Classification and understanding of the types of injury are essential before diagnosis and treatment can be undertaken. Although dental injuries can occur singly, they more usually involve a combination of injuries to a tooth and its supporting structures. Prompt, accurate diagnosis and appropriate emergency treatment as outlined in this paper will greatly improve the prognosis for many dentoalveolar injuries. The aim must be to ensure that the third of the population of preteenage children who damage their teeth are not resigned to loss of an incisor in later life because of inaccurate diagnosis and poor treatment of the emergency condition.