title: Management of dental trauma by general practitioners.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patients who sustain dental trauma commonly present to their general practitioner (GP) or the emergency department, especial-ly to seek help after hours. It is important, therefore, for medical practitioners to correctly diagnose and manage these patients.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this paper is to familiarise GPs with different presentations of dental-related trauma, and a brief management plan for each condition.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Time is of the utmost importance when dealing with trauma in the dentition. Initial management of dental trauma, primarily by GPs working in rural or remote areas, can have a significant impact on the prognosis of oral hard and soft tissues.
authors.affiliation: MBBS, BSc, Principal House Officer in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Gold Coast University Hospital, Brisbane, QLD.
authors.forename: Nicholas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Beech
authors.forename: Eileen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Tan-Gore
authors.forename: Karrar
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bohreh
authors.forename: Dimitrios
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nikolarakos
mesh_terms: D003813:Dentistry; D058006:General Practice; D006801:Humans; D010519:Periodontium / Q000293:injuries; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D013165:Splints; D013997:Time Factors; D014070:Tooth / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D018677:Tooth Injuries / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy*