• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.53 no.8
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• pp.522-529
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• 2015

Cardiac arrest can occur in dental clinics. All dental professionals should be trained to deal with emergency situations that is threatening life. Dental professionals should be familiar with the protocol which include basic life support, advanced life support and specific drugs to be administered in emergencies. Emergency can occur in any dental office without any warnings. Further, it has been noted in recent times there is an increase in a number of medico-legal cases due to rise in a number of death in the dental chair. This review article aims at briefing the basic life support required to manage the medical emergency having life-threatening potential.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.58-64
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• 2012

Purpose: Dental emergencies vary from toothaches to oral and maxillofacial traumas. Because the number of dental emergency cases has increased recently, we analyzed characteristics of patients seen during the last 2 years, in an effort to find a trend. Methods: This study was carried out with emergency room patients visiting the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery from 2009 to 2010. Results: The total number of patients studied was 1,162; the ratio of males to females was 1.73:1. The most frequent age group was 0 to 9 years, followed by 20 to 29 years. Trauma (58.7%) was the most frequent cause followed by acute toothache, oral hemorrhage, infection, and temporomandibular (TMJ) disorder. In the trauma group, injuries of soft tissue and alveolus were prevalent. The most common causes of soft tissue injury were falls, safety violations and assault. The highest incidence of emergencies was seen in patients 0 to 9 years old (41.8%). The most common causes of jaw fracture were falls, assaults, and traffic accidents in that order. In the acute toothache group, most patients had pulpitis (41.2%). In the infection group, most had buccal space abscesses (40.0%). In the hemorrhage group, post-operative bleeding cases (80.5%) were the majority, and hemostasis was obtained mostly by pressure dressings. For the TMJ disorder group, masticatory muscle disorder (65.4%) was more common than TMJ dislocation. Conclusion: In this study, trauma was the most frequent reason for patients who visited the emergency room. However, acute toothache, hemorrhage, infection and TMJ disorders were also seen frequently. Dental emergency patients could be better treated by understanding patterns of dental emergencies and performing proper diagnoses.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.77-83
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• 2015

Background: To prepare for possible emergency situations during dental treatment, it is helpful to know how often and what kinds of emergencies may arise. This study set out to evaluate the incidences, causes, treatments, and outcomes of emergency situations in the outpatient clinic of a dental teaching hospital in Korea. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of patients who had experienced an emergency situation and emergency response team activated in a selected outpatient clinic between November 2004 and November 2013. Specific information about the emergency cases was collected, including the patient characteristics and the frequency, types, treatments, and outcomes of the emergency situations. Results: We identified 35 instances of emergency situations in 2,890,424 patients (incidence = 0.012 per 10,000 outpatients). The number of cases was as follows: 10 (28.6%) in the Department of Periodontics, 10 (28.6%) in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 6 (17.1%) in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, 4 (11.4%) in the Department of Prosthodontics, 2 (5.7%) in the Department of Conservative Dentistry, 2 (5.7%) in the Department of Pediatric Dentistry, and 1 (2.9%) in the Department of Orthodontics. Three (8.6%) of the emergency situations arose before treatment, 22 (62.9%) during treatment, 7 (20.0%) after treatment, and 2 (5.7%) in a patient's guardian. Conclusions: In accordance with the growing elderly population and more aggressive dental procedures, the number of emergency situations may increase in the future. We recommend that clinicians keep in mind airway management and the active control of emergency situations.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.457-464
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• 2022

Tracheostomy is a surgical procedure that is commonly used to treat upper airway obstruction. In particular, patients with head and neck cancer may require elective or emergency tracheostomy because of airway obstruction due to massive bleeding of the intraoral tumor mass and rapid growth of the tumor mass in the neck area. Here, we report four cases of tracheostomy in patients with head and neck cancer with narrowed airway space and difficulty in breathing. Based on these cases and a literature review, we recommend that oral and maxillofacial surgeons and dental anesthesiologists should cooperate closely and determine the appropriate timing to perform definitive airway management for such patients during palliative treatment, along with continuous evaluation of tumor location, risk of recurrence, and airway involvement.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.119-123
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• 2019

Foreign body aspiration in dental clinics is the most common cause of respiratory emergencies. There are no reports on foreign body aspiration during dental treatment under stable general anesthesia because the patient neither has voluntary movements nor reflex actions. This is a case report on the fall of a prosthesis in the larynx, which occurs rarely under general anesthesia. During the try-in procedure, the prosthesis slid from the surgeon's hand and entered the retromylohyoid space, and while searching for it, it passed down the larynx to the endotracheal tube balloon, leading to a dangerous situation. The prosthesis was promptly removed using video-assisted laryngoscope and forceps, and the patient was discharged without any complications.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.9-15
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• 2016

Programs provided by the Korea Association of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation include Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), and Korean Advanced Life Support (KALS). However, programs pertinent to dental care are lacking. Since 2015, related organizations have been attempting to develop a Dental Advanced Life Support (DALS) program, which can meet the needs of the dental environment. Generally, for initial management of emergency situations, basic life support is most important. However, emergencies in young children mostly involve breathing. Therefore, physicians who treat pediatric dental patients should learn PALS. It is necessary for the physician to regularly renew training every two years to be able to immediately implement professional skills in emergency situations. In order to manage emergency situations in the pediatric dental clinic, respiratory support is most important. Therefore, mastering professional PALS, which includes respiratory care and core cases, particularly upper airway obstruction and respiratory depression caused by a respiratory control problem, would be highly desirable for a physician who treats pediatric dental patients. Regular training and renewal training every two years is absolutely necessary to be able to immediately implement professional skills in emergency situations.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.318-325
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• 2022

Population aging and the usage of small devices in implant prosthetic procedures have led to many incidents of dental aspiration and ingestion. Various preventive measures have been introduced to prevent these accidents. However, accidents can occur at any time. Dental aspiration and ingestion lead to fatal consequences if the issue is not promptly and appropriately dealt with. Preparing a collaborative system for dealing with accidents before they occur can prevent further sequelae. This study involves ingestion and aspiration accidents that occurred during dental treatment: two ingestion cases and one aspiration case. All dental foreign bodies were removed according to the guidelines presented in our review. With the cooperation of other medical departments, the issues were quickly resolved. Simple and accurate protocols should be provided to all dentists and dental staff to respond to such dental emergencies. In addition, collaboration among other medical departments should be established before any accidental ingestion and aspiration events occur.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.58 no.10
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• pp.649-655
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• 2020

As a dentist, we should be prepared for emergencies that can occur at any time in dental practice. In addition, we must be able to provide first aid to patients with the latest knowledge when an emergency actually occurs. It has been revised every five years since the American Heart Association published advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS) guidelines. The current final guideline is the 2015 version. It is expected that the 2020 version will be released around the winter of 2020. Therefore, at this point, the latest version (2015 ver.) will be important. Many changes were made from 1995 to 2015. I would like to summarize the parts of the revised parts that remain important.

• The Journal of the Korean dental association
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• v.51 no.8
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• pp.442-450
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• 2013

It is well known that the majority of dental injuries occur in children and adolescent. An injury to the teeth can have serious and long-term consequences, leading to their discoloration, malformation, or possible loss. The emotional impact of such an injury can be far reaching. The majority of dental injuries in the primary and permanent dentitions involve the anterior teeth, especially the maxillary central incisors. Concussion, subluxation, and luxation are the commonest injuries in the primary dentition, while uncomplicated crown fractures are commonest in the permanent dentition. If it is decided to preserve a traumatized primary tooth, it should be carefully observed for clinical and radiographic signs of pulpal or periodontal complications. Radiographs are also examined closely to disclose any damage to the permanent successor. The intervals between reexaminations should be individualized depending on the severity of trauma, the expected type of complications and the age of the patient. Most complications are observed within the first year of the trauma. However, the follow-up evaluation of permanent teeth should continue until treatment of all complications is completed, or until a lost or extracted permanent tooth has been adequately replaced. It is important that the dentist and the other members of the dental team are well prepared to meet the many complex and challenging problems in the care of dental emergencies.

• Journal of The Korean Dental Society of Anesthesiology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.183-189
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• 2010

Medical emergencies are not rare in dental practice but when an emergency does occur it can be life-threatening. Medical emergency such as hypertensive crisis can be encountered in dental practice and the dentist should be competent in emergency management by taking life support courses. This report shows 3 cases of hypertensive crisis during dental treatment and we discuss proper management of the patients. The medical and dental management for the hypertensive crisis included a correct diagnosis, pharmacological usages for pain control and stress relieving environment making.