Traumatic Injuries of Permanent Teeth and Their Management: Dental Trauma-an Enigma

Traumatic dental injuries present difficult problems for both patients and their dentists. Current evidence allows the dental health care provider to manage situations that, in the past, often resulted in crippled dentition and unsightly appearance. Appropriate treatment can turn what at first glance looks like a hopeless situation into a very satisfactory outcome for patients. Most dental injuries involve damage to one or two teeth. However, often multiple teeth are injured and injuries are associated with soft tissue and alveolar fractures. In these cases, treatment must be prioritized and preference given to injuries for which time is important in determining long-term prognosis. Dental traumatology has progressed in recent years to improve the understanding of the biological considerations involved in both diagnosis and treatment principles. Through public awareness efforts, people now are more knowledgeable about dental trauma (e.g. knowing to put an avulsed tooth in milk). Research explores new approaches (e.g. laser doppler flowmeter for pulpal evaluation) and materials (e.g. Emdogains). The future has promise for even more successful management of traumatic dental injuries.