Office of Practice Opportunities
Are you a dentist who extracts teeth?
If yes, we need your help!
Help Support the Next Generation of Dentists
We are seeking donated extracted teeth for students to use in dental courses and research projects. These teeth play an important role in helping students develop hands-on skills in Operative Dentistry and Endodontics before providing patient care.
If you are a dentist who performs extractions, we would greatly appreciate your help. By saving extracted teeth and donating them to our program, you are directly supporting student learning, research and the education of future dental professionals.
Thank you for considering this valuable contribution.
If you'd like to participate, we'll make it easy. We'll provide a collection container and cover all shipping costs.
Tooth Collection & Return Shipping Instructions
Thank you for supporting dental education through your donation of extracted teeth. We greatly appreciate your participation in this program.
When unpacking your collection bottle, please save all packaging materials for return shipping. Reusing the original packaging helps ensure the bottle can be returned safely and securely.
Getting Started
- Open the shipping box and remove the plastic bag containing the collection bottle.
- Remove the bottle and set aside all packaging materials for future return shipping.
- The collection bottle contains a 0.2% thymol solution, a non-hazardous disinfectant used to preserve the teeth. To help prevent leaks during shipping, the bottle has been sealed with parafilm and packaged with absorbent materials.
- If the bottle arrived intact, simply remove the parafilm and begin collecting teeth.
Note: If most of the solution has leaked during shipping, please contact us, and we will send a replacement bottle. If only a small amount has leaked, the bottle can still be used. In that case, please discard any wet packaging materials and use the replacement absorbent materials included in your shipment.
Collecting Teeth
- Place extracted teeth directly into the thymol solution for storage.
- Teeth may be added over time until you are ready to return the bottle.
- Please make sure the teeth remain covered by the solution and avoid overfilling the container.
Returning Your Collection
When your collection bottle is full and ready to return:
- Ensure the lid is securely tightened.
- Wrap the parafilm strip around the lid to help prevent leaks during transit.
- Place the collection bottle and one absorbent sheet into the Ziplock bag labeled "Human Teeth in 0.2% Thymol Solution (Non-Hazardous)."
- Place this sealed bag inside the larger biohazard Ziplock bag provided.
- Repack the materials in the original shipping box and securely tape the box closed.
- Apply the prepaid UPS return shipping label, along with the enclosed Biohazard and "Exempt Human Samples" stickers, to the outside of the box.
- The package is now ready to return and can be given directly to your regular UPS driver.
Once we receive your shipment, we'll send you a new collection bottle so you can continue participating in the program.
Thank you again for helping educate the next generation of dental professionals. Your support makes a meaningful difference in our students' learning experience.
Dear Friends and Valued Partners,
Thank you for supporting dental education by collecting extracted teeth for our students. Your contributions provide valuable hands-on learning opportunities that help prepare future dentists for clinical practice. We are especially grateful for teeth that are intact and free of extensive decay, as these are the most beneficial for student training.
As a reminder, please save your mailing container so it can be reused when returning a filled collection bottle.
A prepaid UPS return label is included with your collection bottle for your convenience.
If your office receives regular UPS deliveries, simply give the filled bottle to the UPS driver during their next stop. There is no need to call UPS to arrange a pickup.
Once we receive your filled bottle, we will send a new collection bottle so you can continue participating in the program.
Please see the instructions below for collecting and shipping teeth back to us. Following these guidelines helps ensure the teeth are safely transported and ready to support student education and research.
If you have any questions or need additional supplies, please contact our Tooth Collectors Team (dent-tc-mgmt@uiowa.edu; 319 - 335 - 3767).
Thank you again for your generosity and partnership in educating the next generation of dental professionals. Your support truly makes a difference.
Sincerely,