80% of antibiotics are prescribed unnecessarily by dentists in US

Of the 266 million courses of antibiotics prescribed in the US, 10 per cent are dispensed by dentists. However, according to a new study by researchers in Chicago, 80 per cent of these are unnecessarily prescribed.

Study author, Katie Suda, said “Use of preventive antibiotics in these patients opens them up to the risks associated with antibiotic use – increasing bacterial resistance and infections, for example – when the evidence used to develop the guidelines suggests that the risks outweigh the benefits in most patients.”

Despite international efforts to restrict the use of antibiotics, little has changed in the last few decades, regardless of evidence which shows that the more we take, the faster we will all become resistant to the life-saving drugs.

Efforts to restrict prescriptions included targeting the practice of prescribing antibiotics before a dental visit for patients with high risk of infection from heart conditions or prosthetic joints. However, research has shown that this may not be effective or necessary, so US dentistry rules published in 2007 and tightened in 2013, stated that only the highest risk patients should be prescribed the pre-appointment drugs.

However, according to the research undertaken at the University of Illinois, the guideline change is not being acknowledged by all practices. The research found that 81 per cent of prescriptions did not line up with the guidelines and were still being dispensed to patients without high risk conditions.

Susan Rowan of the UIC College of Dentistry, who assisted with the research, said “I think dental providers should view this study, which is the first to look at preventative antibiotic prescribing for dental procedures and provide this type of actionable information, as a powerful call to action, not a rebuke.”

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Posted by Tony May, Partner/head of Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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