The antibiotics’ use for certain dental procedures

Since the American Heart Association (AHA) announced last April that it no longer recommends the use of antibiotics to prevent infectious endocarditis in certain dental patients, a question that always comes up is whether patients who have undergone joint prostheses need to use antibiotics before dental procedures.

The answer is yes.

The American Dental Association (ADA) and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons further recommend that all patients use antibiotics for the first two years after joint prosthesis placement prior to certain dental procedures, and an additional two years for patients with compromised immunity and patients. with certain related diseases.

The AHA and ADA recommend the use of antibiotics prior to dental procedures for patients with artificial heart valves, previous history of endocarditis, certain congenital heart disease, and heart transplant patients who develop problems with a heart valve.

Recommendations no longer indicate the use of antibiotics for the following diseases: mitral valve prolapse, rheumatic heart disease, bicuspid valve disease, calcified aortic stenosis, or congenital heart disease such as interventricular communication, interatrial communication, and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Current guidelines apply to many dental procedures, including dental prophylaxis and extractions.

The recommendations emphasize that maintaining perfect oral health and daily oral hygiene practice are more important in reducing the risk of developing infectious endocarditis than the preventive use of antibiotics prior to dental treatment.

The new recommendations are based on "a comprehensive review of published studies indicating that infectious endocarditis is more likely to occur through bacteria that penetrate the bloodstream as a result of daily activities than from a dental procedure," according to a publication from AHA.

For more information on antibiotic prophylaxis recommendations, visit the ADA Web site at www.ada.org.

Source: Colgate. Available at: https://www.colgate.com.br/oral-health/basics/dental-visits/ada-07-antibiotic-treatment. Access on: 08/17/2020.