Investigations on a cell culture medium for storage and transportation of avulsed teeth

Non-physiologic storage of avulsed teeth leads to a high incidence of root resorption, resulting in poor prognosis. This study investigated the suitability of specially composed cell culture media for storage of extracted teeth for up to 48 hours. Autoradiographic investigations revealed that the proliferative activity of periodontal ligament (PDL) cells of teeth stored in cell culture medium for up to 48 hours increased with storage time. Studies on proliferation of PDL cells after storage of teeth in different media for up to 24 hours demonstrated that the proliferative activity is dependent on the composition of the medium. Immunohistochemical investigations with markers for cell proliferation revealed that pulp cells of extracted immature teeth show numerous proliferations after storage for up to 24 hours in a special cell culture medium but few proliferations after storage in Hanks Balanced Salt Solution (HBSS). The investigations indicate that a special cell culture medium can preserve cell viability of PDL cells adhering to extracted teeth for at least 48 hours. The in vitro results are confirmed by a case presented: After storage of two upper central incisors for 36 hours in the cell culture medium the teeth could be successfully reimplanted after extraoral insertion of titanium posts into the root canal (auto-alloplastic reimplantation). Clinical and radiological follow-up examinations for 12 months revealed normal periodontal healing.