Self and prescribed antibiotic medication – A review update on attitude of dental patients and dental practitioners

K. Anbarasi; S. Aravind Warrier; J.V. Karunakaran

Volume : VIII, Issue : V, May - 2019

Self and prescribed antibiotic medication – A review update on attitude of dental patients and dental practitioners

K. Anbarasi, S. Aravind Warrier, J. V. Karunakaran

Abstract :

Antimicrobial resistance is a major challenge in healthcare professions including dentistry. Study reports reveal that throat pain, running nose, tooth ache, and diarrhea are the common symptoms for which people frequently self–medicate. Dentists prescribe antibiotics for dental infections as a therapeutic approach but there is a significant variation among dental practitioners in prescribing antibiotics for different clinical conditions, frequency, dosage, and duration. Also, the availability of antibiotics without prescription is coated as a major reason for the antibiotic misuse in developing countries. The consumption of antibiotics in an inappropriate way leads to the generation of resistant microbes known as superbugs. Emergence of drug resistant infection is the consequential threat worldwide that increases the rate of death due to uncontrollable microbial infections. People living in developing countries, notably lower socio–economic groups are in a vulnerable state if they develop infectious diseases. The financial constraints forcefully put them in an out of the bound zone from prolonged hospitalization and get cured of resistant infections. Hence this superbug issue should be handled with priority and this article aims to report the literature evidence of antibiotic misuse in dental practice and the potential precautions to be considered for overcoming the problem.