Prescribing recommendations for the treatment of acute pain in dentistry.

Effective acute pain management is an essential but sometimes challenging component of dental practice. Numerous studies have examined the efficacy of various analgesic agents in dental postoperative models. This article combines an evaluation of the available evidence with current prescribing patterns to provide dental practitioners prescribing recommendations for acute pain, based on the anticipated severity of post-procedural pain. An important consideration when prescribing analgesics is to determine for whom opioid analgesics are necessary and appropriate, and if so, the dose and quantity that should be prescribed. This is partly because of the prevalence of substance and alcohol abuse that can be expected to be encountered within the dental patient population, and because substance abusers in the community frequently obtain prescription drugs from friends and family for misuse.

Prevention of prescription opioid abuse: the role of the dentist.

BACKGROUND: Opioids are analgesics that have potential for misuse, abuse or addiction. Up to an estimated 23 percent of prescribed doses are used nonmedically. As prescribers of 12 percent of immediate-release (IR) opioids in the United States, dentists can minimize the potential for misuse or abuse. METHODS: The authors participated in a two-day meeting in March 2010 cohosted by Tufts Health Care Institute Program on Opioid Risk Management, Boston, and Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, Boston. The purpose of the meeting was to synthesize available opioid abuse literature and data from a 2010 survey regarding West Virginia dentists' analgesic prescribing practices, identify dentists' roles in prescribing opioids that are used nonmedically, highlight practices that dentists can implement and identify research gaps. RESULTS: Dentists can play a role in minimizing opioid abuse through patient education, careful patient assessment and referral for substance abuse treatment when indicated, and using tools such as prescription monitoring programs. Research is needed to determine the optimal number of doses needed to treat dental-related pain. CONCLUSIONS: Dentists cannot assume that their prescribing of opioids does not affect the opioid abuse problem in the United States. The authors suggest that dentists, along with other prescribers, take steps to identify problems and minimize prescription opioid abuse through greater prescriber and patient education; use of peer-reviewed recommendations for analgesia; and, when indicated, the tailoring of the appropriate and legitimate prescribing of opioids to adequately treat pain. Practice Implications. The authors encourage dentists to incorporate practical safeguards when prescribing opioids, consistently educate patients about how to secure unused opioids properly, screen patients for substance use disorders and develop a referral network for the treatment of substance use disorders.