Effect of teeth protector on dental injuries during general anesthesia

BACKGROUND: Dental injuries are the most common reason for complaints against anesthetists. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of teeth protector on dental injuries during general anesthesia. METHODS: Incidence of dental injuries was evaluated retrospectively in 5,946 consecutive patients between November 1998 and October 2001. All the patients were interviewed directly at a post-anesthetic clinic. RESULTS: Dental injuries were observed in 2.1% of the patients, and the injuries occurred more frequently in the patients undergoing difficult tracheal intubation. The teeth protector used in the present study was made of cellulose aceto-butylate and was produced using eruko-pressed disks molded from own teeth form. One hundred and eighty five patients (3.1%) requested teeth protectors, and none of them had their teeth injured during anesthesia. CONCLUSION: Our results showed that the teeth protector could protect the teeth from dental injuries and increased the satisfaction with anesthesia. Preoperatively anesthesiologists should know the characteristics of patients' teeth and inform the patients of the risk of injury. We conclude that the custom-made protector might be useful and necessary to preserve the teeth from dental injuries during anesthesia. Language: ja