Awareness of management of dental trauma among medical professionals in Pondicherry, India Injury to children may range from a simple enamel chip to an extensive maxillofacial trauma. Tooth avulsion is one common dental trauma encountered in preschool and school children (1). Studies from countries such as United States and Hong Kong have shown that the primary cause for traumatic tooth injuries among school children is from falls (2, 3). Survey studies among school teachers in Singapore, Brazil and Hong Kong revealed that they possessed very little technical knowledge on the first response management of tooth avulsion or other dental trauma (4–6). Parents and school teachers often have the first opportunity to attend to a child with a tooth avulsion injury, but the emergency medical service doctors are frequently the first to actually provide primary treat- ment. To ensure proper and appropriate treatment for children with dental trauma, it is essential that emer- gency medical professionals have sufficient training in the basic principles of management of dental trauma. Our search of the literature revealed only one study from Israel that evaluated the knowledge of medical professionals in the management of tooth avulsion injuries (7). Materials and methods A 10-item questionnaire was designed to assess current knowledge and interest in learning to treat dental trauma (Table 1). Doctors were personally interviewed and were assured of confidentiality. The study group was convenience sample of physicians working in medical colleges or as residents in advanced training programmes in medicine in Pondicherry, India. Results Two hundred physicians who were approached readily agreed to participate and returned the completed filled questionnaires on the same day. For question 1: while 24% (n = 48) of the partici- pants had come across children with tooth avulsion, 76% (n = 152) had not experienced an avulsion injury. For question 2: 58% (n = 116) of the participants preferred to wash the child’s mouth with tap water and would advise to take the tooth in a wet cloth. 36.5% (n = 73) would refer the child to the dentist without bothering about the tooth. Only 5.5% (n = 11) would like to put back the tooth into the socket before referring to the dentist (Fig. 1). For question 3: 52% (n = 104) of the participants would like to seek a dentist’s opinion immediately. While 33.5% (n = 67) would not mind delay up to 30 min for seeking dental treatment, 14.5% would delay even few hours. For question 4: if the avulsed tooth was covered with dirt, 57.5% (n = 115) of the participants would wash the tooth with sterile saline, 21% (n = 42) would not do anything, 16% (n = 32) would rinse with tap water and 5.5% (n = 11) would use hydrogen peroxide to clean the tooth (Fig. 2). For question 5: if the crown of the tooth was fractured 56% (n = 112) of the participants would advise to take the broken tooth to the dentist, 33.5% (n = 67) would not be concerned about the fractured crown and 10.5% (n = 21) were not sure what to do with the fractured crown. For question 6: 35.5% (n = 71) of the participants would advise to keep the tooth in normal saline, 22.5% Dental Traumatology 2009; 25: 92–94; doi: 10.1111/j.1600-9657.2008.00714.x 92 Ó 2009 The Author. Journal compilation Ó 2009 John Wiley & Sons A/S Krishnaraj Subhashraj Department of Dentistry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Pondicherry, India Correspondence to: Dr Subhashraj Krishnaraj, 10, 8 th Cross, Brindavan, Pondicherry, India 605013 Tel.: +91 413 2246312 Fax: +91 413 2225992 e-mail: rajsubhash@rediffmail.com Accepted 27 April, 2008 Abstract – The aim of the study was to establish the level of knowledge on the management of dental trauma among physicians at Pondicherry, India. A questionnaire was designed and was given to physicians working in medical colleges or as residents in advanced training programs in medicine in Pondicherry, India. The questionnaire contained a clinical situation of tooth avulsion and various treatment options. Only 5.5% of the medical professionals knew about reimplantation and none knew that the patients’ mouth was the best transport medium. 90% of them accepted that they had no knowledge on dental trauma management. As the physicians get an opportunity to attend a case of dental trauma in emergency or private practice, it is vital that they possess sufficient knowledge on primary management of tooth avulsion, before referring to dentists.