Efficiency of different storage media for avulsed teeth in animal models: a systematic review

Background/aims: Tooth avulsion consists of the complete displacement of a tooth from the alveolar socket. When immediate replantation is not possible, the avulsed tooth should be kept in a storage medium capable of maintaining the viability of periodontal ligament (PDL) cells on the root surface. However, there is no consensus on the best storage medium able to prevent sequels such as ankylosis and tooth resorption. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review to evaluate the in vivo effectiveness of different storage media for avulsed teeth.

Methods: Two reviewers performed a database search for studies published between January 1950 and December 2015 which were indexed in the PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Bireme databases. An additional manual search was performed. Studies with animal models that evaluated tooth avulsion, storage media, and replantation were included. After full-text analysis of the potentially relevant studies, the selected studies were included in the systematic review.

Results: The database search found 157 distinct studies evaluating avulsed teeth storage media. However, only six studies met the selection criteria and were included in the review. There was a high variability in the study estimates for the parameters analyzed. When assessing the quality and level of evidence of each study, one study was rated as having a very low level of evidence, four studies had low levels of evidence, and one had a moderate level of evidence.

Conclusion: As a result of data heterogeneity and limitations of the studies, there was insufficient evidence to determine the most effective storage medium for avulsed teeth.