Dental health is strongly linked to other organism systems, and therefore, many medical organizations have special guidelines for patients who require dental operations. During some procedures or surgeries, oral bacteria may enter the bloodstream, causing problems in the organism.
For instance, patients who had surgery total knee or hip arthroplasty may be highly vulnerable to periprosthetic joint infections (PJI) caused by oral pathogens attached to hip or knee implants. PJI is one of the most dangerous complications of these operations that significantly increases mortality among patients and leads to mental health disorders.
Regarding this problem, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons released an update on PJI prevention guidelines, where the organization changed the prophylaxis recommendation for dental patients who had total knee or hip arthroplasty.
Responsible prescription methods
Previously, it was thought that the consumption of antibiotics before the dental operation would reduce the risk of PJI. However, after carefully considering recent research data, AAOS concluded that this practice has no actual effect on patients' organisms. Thus, scientists involved in guidance release stress that antibiotic prescription should be considered more carefully, trying to avoid antibiotic overuse.
The latter, in turn, contributes to global antimicrobial resistance – pathogenes evolve, gaining resistance to various antibiotics, significantly complicating treatment, and increasing mortality among patients. Antimicrobial resistance problem solution is one of the key trends in modern medicine, focusing on reducing the number of unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions and developing new non-antibiotical methods of pathogenes inhibiting.
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