Knowledge of 1st-4th-Grade Teachers from Municipal Public Schools of the City of Manaus/AM about Tooth Avulsion

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the knowledge of 1st-4th grade teachers form municipal public schools of the city of Manaus/AM about tooth avulsion. Method: Three hundred and eleven professionals from all regions of the city of Manaus/AM were interviewed using a standardized form containing closed, open and multiple-choice questions about tooth avulsion, tooth replantation and the procedures necessary to improve the prognosis in cases of avulsed teeth. After the interview, a folder containing information about the correct urgency procedures to be adopted in case of tooth avulsion was handed to the participants, in an attempt to make elementary public school teachers capable of spreading this knowledge. Results: 57.1% of the teachers had only high school education and 49.8% had 1 to 5 years of professional experience. From the teachers that attended first-aid training (29.9%), only 12.9% had previous information on dentoalveolar trauma. 66.9% could not distinguish primary from permanent teeth, and 61.7% would only give a towel for the student to bite in case of dental trauma, not dispensing the necessary attention to the avulsed tooth. Only 5.5% would replant the avulsed tooth at the site of the accident. Most teachers (55.9%) responded that immediate dental care is necessary, 51.1% considered the dentist as the most qualified professional for these cases, and 58.8% would choose tap water as the ideal storage medium for the avulsed tooth. Conclusion: The interviewed teachers did not have adequate knowledge of the urgency procedures to be adopted in case of tooth avulsion, demonstrating the need of incorporating this subject to the curriculum of these professionals and performing health educational campaigns to improve the frequency and prognosis of replanted teeth.