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THE INFLUENCE OF THE TOOTH BANK AT THE PETROLINA HEALTH
COLLEGE IN PERNAMBUCO: AN EXPERIENCE REPORT
Anne Caroline Ribeiro Lacerda1
Clarisse Cirqueira Araujo Telles Nouzinho2
Fernanda Sanchez da Cunha3
Giovana Amariz Silva4
Laís Cavalcante Carneiro5
Lívia Jordania Lino Figueredo6
Malvina de Souza Pereira7
Thaís da Silva Oliveira8
Abstract: Introduction: The Human Teeth Bank institution plays an important role in understanding
teeth as organs and in controlling the illegal trade of teeth in Dentistry schools. Considering that the
loan of teeth is essential in the training of professionals and future dentists, this is an academic extension
project of Faculdade Soberana, which aims to regulate, monitor, and ensure the loan of natural teeth
to students and professors. Objectives: This work aims to analyze, through this study, the performance
1 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
2 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
3 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
4 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
5 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
6 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
7 Master in pediatric dentistry from São Leopoldo Mandic– 13045-755, Campinas – SP, Brazil.
8 Undergraduate in Dentistry from the Sovereign Faculty of Health of Petrolina, 56308-000,
Petrolina – PE, Brazil.
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of the Human Teeth Bank of Vale do São Francisco and how it is given regarding the legality of the
origin of the teeth correlated with the receipt, preparation, and distribution. Materials and methods: An
experience report was made of the activities carried out by the project participants since its foundation
in March 2022 to December 2023, in addition to a systematization of the work, discussing the processes
and management based on literature. Results: It was possible to analyze that the extension project plays
an important role in the relationship of integration between students, professors, and technicians in
the activities developed. As a consequence, it assumes notoriety in the ethical and bioethical sphere
by eliminating the illegal form of tooth trade and contributing to distribution in addition to meeting
educational and clinical needs. Conclusion: It is essential that during the training of dentists, there is the
dissemination of content about the functioning and ethical and legal requirements for the use of human
teeth, thus being able to eliminate the illegal trade of organs and contribute to enriching academic
studies and research.
Keywords: Organ bank, Ethics dental, Scientic research.
INTRODUCTION
The human tooth bank was the main watershed in the understanding of the tooth as a human
organ, because it was with the rst BDH created, from the University of São Paulo in 1996, that the
National Legislation of the Transplant System formulated Law No. 9,434 and declared the tooth as an
organ. (Brazil, 1997) Therefore, from that moment on, the sale of human teeth was suspended by canon,
as it was classied as tracking and a crime, thus obtaining a sentence of 3 to 8 years. (Maciel, 2022)
Every semester, undergraduate dental students need teeth for their laboratory practices and pre-
clinical training, which is essential for professional training. Many of these students end up obtaining
teeth illegally and often contaminated, thus, a BDH gains notoriety as the main means of obtaining teeth
safely, based on a process of collection, storage, sterilization, loan, and administration of donated teeth
that has a TCLE (Term of Free and Informed Commitment) approved by a Research Ethics Committee.
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( Pereira, 2014)
The donations of elements to a BDH are usually made by dentists from the public or private
network and university school clinic, the reuse of these natural teeth is a very old habit that can be
essential in the use of laboratory practices such as Endodontics, Prosthesis, Dentistry and for studies of
Forensic Dentistry. (Farias, 2016)
In this sense, the BDH of the São Francisco Valley is an academic extension project of the
Faculty of Health of Petrolina-Soberana, which aims to facilitate the loan of natural teeth to students
and professors for scientic research and pre-clinical practices in an ethical way.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
This experience report refers to a descriptive work of the activities carried out by BDHVASF
participants from its foundation in March 2022 to December 2023, demonstrating the legal, bioethical,
and biosafety principles involved in making teeth available for teaching, research, and extension
activities.
Regarding the systematization of this work, initially the most relevant scientic articles,
dissertations and theses on the subject were selected in the virtual libraries VHL (Virtual Health
Library), LILACS, PUBMED and Google School; using the descriptors “Organ Bank”, “Dental Ethics”
and “Scientic Research”, so that in a clear and didactic way it is possible for the scientic-academic
community to understand and clarify the subject. Next, the processes and management of the BDHVASF
were discussed, based on the literature.
DISCUSSION
The purpose of the BDHVASF in the institution is not only related to the extension project,
but also as something routine from the stage of collection, disinfection and preservation of teeth, the
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presence of students is essential, as there is no prot. The implementation of the BDHVASF at the
Faculty of Health of Petrolina-Soberana began in 2022, after the need for students to use human teeth in
academic laboratory activities, such as endodontics, prosthesis, dental anatomy and dentistry. Because
of the dicult access to dental organs, some academics had the practice of acquiring them illegally,
such as in the purchase of the organ.
One of the benets of implementing and structuring a BDH within an institution is the reduction
of the illegal sale of teeth, mainly because it is responsible for providing a selection of teeth suitable for
prior use and sterilized, ensuring safe use by graduates. (Leite, 2022)
TOOTH DONATION
The BDHVASF is composed of students who are responsible for assisting and verifying the
completion of the Free and Informed Consent Form (ICF) and the research form, which in turn is
completed by each patient undergoing at least one tooth extraction within the clinic of the Higher
Education Institution, (Matos, 2023) in the postgraduate course of Minor Oral Surgery and Sovereign
Implantology - Faculty of Health of Petrolina. When collecting the complete term, the student is
responsible for storing the organ in a pot, then washing it in running water with detergent and brush to
remove debris and prior storage.
TEETH PREPARATION
After the disinfection process, scaling is carried out with ultrasound to remove calculus and
bone remains. Therefore, the prepared teeth are separated into containers identied according to their
dental groups: incisors, canines, premolars, molars, root remnants and anomalies, as well as permanent
and deciduous.
Although there is uncertainty about the best solution for storing the teeth, after studies to
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identify the ideal substances, the use of saline solutions, water, formaldehyde, chloramines, ethanol,
thymol, sodium azide, etc. (Poletto, 2010) Water is the storage solution used by BDHVASF together with
refrigeration in a refrigerator, oered by the institution, thus changing water weekly by the participants
of the extension project. To obtain control of this water exchange, labels are used with the date of the
last change, the number of elements and their groups.
TOOTH DISTRIBUTION
The request for teeth is made from a form that is on the project’s website, in which you have
all the necessary information and your step by step, at rst you must ll out the request form 07 (seven)
days in advance; After that, the applicant will receive an email conrming the request, with the date,
time and place of withdrawal. Upon receiving the request, a member of the project has the function of
separating, washing and sterilizing the dental organs, thus avoiding cross-contamination. After using
the teeth, it is worth mentioning that the applicant is responsible for the return within 180 days of the
same or another element, if there is any complication. The use of teeth in laboratory practice takes
place through loans that are granted to undergraduates and/or professors/researchers. Regardless of
the degree of wear or destruction, it is the applicant’s responsibility to return the tooth to the bank.
When the purpose is research, the teeth may be loaned or transferred to the applicant, depending on the
applicant’s circumstances. (Endo et al., 2017; Araújo et al., 2023; Silva et al., 2018)
ROLE OF THE TOOTH BANK IN RESEARCH
As an extension, teaching and research project, the tooth bank has a range of material for
research, mainly because it provides documentation approved by the Ethics Committee. Oering data
collected from the research form delivered to the students who carried it out. This project also aims at
the production and discussion of scientic articles, such as: Biological Restorations in Deciduous Teeth,
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Tooth Bank: at the service of endodontic teaching of undergraduate courses at the Faculty of Health of
Pernambuco, Main teeth lost early in children at the Dental Clinic of the Sovereign Faculty in Petrolina-
PE and Implementation of the Human Teeth Bank of the São Francisco Valley - experience report.
FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
The performance of the BDH as an extension project allows the integration of students,
professors and technicians in the activities developed that include the collection, storage and distribution
of human teeth for academic studies and research, in addition to meeting didactic and clinical needs.
In view of this, the BDHVASF assumes an essential role in the São Francisco Valley in the
ethical and bioethical sphere, in view of its recognition by the Ethics Committee, thus evidencing its
importance in eliminating the illegal form of the trade of teeth that still exists among the students of
Dental schools and ensuring a signicant destination for them.
REFERENCES
Brazil. Law No. 9,434, of February 4, 1997. Provides for the removal of organs, tissues and parts of
the human body for transplantation and treatment purposes and provides for other provisions. Federal
Ocial Gazette, 1997.
MACIEL, A. C. C. et al. The rst steps towards the implementation of a human tooth bank at the
Faculty of Dentistry-UFF. Revista Fluminense de Odontologia (Online), v. 6, n. 57, p. 1-8, Apr. 2022.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.22409/ijosd.v1i57.49889.
PEREIRA, D. Q. Human teeth bank in Brazil: literature review. Revista da ABENO, v. 12, n. 2, p.
178–184, 2014. DOI: 10.30979/rev.abeno.v12i2.121.
FARIAS, I. L. et al. The contribution of the human tooth bank to technical-scientic development and
its ethical implications: an experience report. In: Anais I CONBRACIS. Campina Grande: Realize
Editora, 2016.
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LEITE, D. P. et al. Implementation, operation and relevance of the human tooth bank for teaching and
research in Dentistry: general provisions. Research, Society and Development, v. 11, n. 10, e310111032753,
2022. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v11i10.32753.
MATOS, J. O. et al. Main tooth lost early in children at the Dental Clinic of the Soberana College in
Petrolina-PE. Revista Eletrônica Amplamente, v. 2, n. 4, p. 565-583, Oct./Dec. 2023.
POLETTO, M. M. et al. Human teeth bank: socio-cultural prole of a group of donors. RGO - Revista
Gaúcha de Odontologia (Online), v. 58, n. 1, p. 91–94, mar. 2010.
ENDO, M. S. et al. The importance of the human tooth bank: an experience report. Archives of Health
Investigation, v. 6, no. 10, 2017. doi: 10.21270/archi.v6i10.2234.
ARAÚJO, A. S. M. et al. Bank of Teeth: At the service of endodontic teaching in graduation at the
Sovereign health Faculty of Petrolina in Pernambuco. Revista Health and Society, v. 3, n. 4, p. 545-551,
jul. 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.51249/hs.v3i04.1561.
DA SILVA, D. P. et al. Knowledge of dental surgeons about Human Tooth Bank. Revista da ABENO, v.
18, n. 2, p. 20–26, 2018. DOI: 10.30979/rev.abeno.v18i2.421.
