Recently I came across an interesting idea: tooth bank for storing one’s teeth! Why would one want to do that… for the stem cells that are in the nerve chamber of the teeth. Just the same as the stem cells in the bone marrow or the umbilical cord, the stem cells in teeth can be used for treatment of many diseases such as spinal cord injuries or leukemia for instance. There are a lot of potential future applications that are currently being worked on like diabetes type I, Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s where stem cells could be used for treating such conditions. So it could be life-saving!
The question is what type of teeth can be used for this purpose at this point. Since the cells that are being used are mostly in the nerve chamber of the teeth, complete whole teeth such as wisdom teeth or teeth that are being extracted for orthodontic purposes or even molars that are fractured but their nerve is intact could definitely be used. Some of the baby teeth that have enough of the nerve in them could also be used. There is a preference in using the teeth that are younger, as in teeth from a younger person (kids, teenagers), however even if one is older, given that the nerve is in good standing, it is still possible to use them for this purpose. If there is a trauma when a tooth is split or completely avulsed, or broken to a point where it’s deemed non-restorable and needs to be taken out, that could also work, again depending on the state of the nerve.
How does one go about doing it is the other thought. There are some dentists that are working with different teeth banks to facilitate this process. There are certain conditions that need to be met for the teeth to be viable for this use. They need to be kept in a solution that would preserve the tooth and of course they need to be kept frozen to keep the nerve cells alive. The best is to have the teeth preserved within the first hour or two, and for that to be received by the facility that is storing it within 48 hours.
The cost of this process is another thought. Contrary to what’s imagined, it’s not too costly; about $600 to start the process (packaging and processing fee) and about $115-120 per each year that the stem cells are preserved. So it’s something to consider if one wants to keep options open for the future!