Testing Item for Dentists (7 ways)

7 Ways Dentists Can
Be Antibiotics Aware
Dentists write approximately 9% of antibiotic
prescriptions dispensed from community pharmacies.
Here are seven simple “how-tos” for safe, appropriate
antibiotic prescribing and use when treating
dental infections.

1. MAKE an accurate diagnosis.

2. If an antibiotic is needed, PRESCRIBE the right antibiotic,
at the right dose, for the right duration, and at the right time.
3. USE the narrowest-spectrum antibiotic that is appropriate
for the situation (e.g., amoxicillin, penicillin, cephalexin
rather than the broad-spectrum antibiotics clindamycin,
amoxicillin-clavulanate, azithromycin).

4. NEVER PRESCRIBE antibiotics for viral infections.

5. For empiric treatment, REVISE the duration of antibiotic
therapy to the minimum effective duration based on patient
progress and/or test results.
6. TALK to your patients about possible harms of antibiotics,
such as allergic reactions, drug interactions, Clostridioides
difficile (C. difficile) infection, and antibiotic-resistant infections.
7. TELL your patients to take antibiotics exactly as prescribed.

www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use