During my six months as a senior house officer in accident and emergency, I was called to see an elderly woman in the resuscitation room. I think her triage card was marked “Collapse, query cause.” She did not require immediate resuscitation. I took a history and examined her, including a rather slapdash cranial nerve examination. Testing the integrity of her seventh nerve, I asked her to “Show me your teeth.” She obliged by spitting her dentures into her hand and nervously offering them to me for inspection. After a brief look, I told her they looked satisfactory, and she replaced them.
Now when attempting to examine the cranial nerves, I ask the patient to “Clench your teeth at me” and mime the clenched jaw action. While I am sure I look silly doing this, I have been spared a palm full of teeth since.