When and in which dental treatments is preventive antibiotics given?

"After the tooth extraction, shouldn't I take antibiotics? To treat the gingivitis that is bothering me, won't you give me medicine? My tooth was hurting and I took an antibiotic I had at home. Why didn't the pain go away?".

These are some of the questions that dentists are asked to answer on an almost daily basis. Unfortunately, many patients mistakenly believe that antibiotics will cure their mouth pain and ask their dentist to give them antibiotics!

The members of the Piraeus Dental Association sound the alarm, stressing that antibiotics are not painkillers and do not cure. The dentist's intervention will take away the pain from the patient's mouth and not antibiotics, also under no circumstances should patients take antibiotics on their own before even visiting their dentist.

It is also well known that the excessive and often incorrect use of antibiotics causes microbial resistance, a problem that is taking on dangerous proportions, with 25,000 people in Europe and 700,000 worldwide dying every year from antibiotic-resistant infections and it is predicted that if no immediate action is taken, by 2050 infections will be the leading cause of death in the world.

This is why scientific bodies recommend the rational use of antibiotics. Rational use means the administration of an antibiotic by a doctor if and when absolutely indicated, at the right dose, at the right frequency and for the right duration.

The only person responsible for administering an antibiotic is the doctor. It is he or she who, depending on the patient's medical history, will decide whether an antibiotic is needed. For example, normal post-operative swelling (swelling) after a surgical tooth extraction is not an indication for antibiotics, nor does prophylactic administration of antibiotics mean reduced post-operative pain or swelling.

Dentists advise patients not to take antibiotics on their own, but also not to ask for antibiotics every time their visit to the dentist's office ends, saying "if I take antibiotics, won't I avoid the worst?"

Book your next appointment :

Greece +30 215 54 54 010         Cyprus +357 25 00 5544

Salamastrakis Dental Clinic