Abstract:

Antimicrobial agents are some of the most commonly used medications in dental practice. Recently, there have been significant changes in the recommendations for antibiotic prophylaxis in invasive dental procedures due to the growing risk of antimicrobial resistance. Therefore, a careful evaluation of the benefit-risk ratio is required. This review aims to discuss and analyze the principles of antibiotic prophylaxis in oral surgery and suggest other treatment and prevention modalities, such as local pharmaceutical agents and ozone therapy. Antibiotic prophylaxis requires the selection of the appropriate drug (appropriate for the patient and effective against the causative pathogen), dosage, timing, treatment duration, and dose interval, which requires good knowledge of the drug’s pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. The risks of adverse drug reactions and antimicrobial resistance should be considered. Topical antiseptic agents, such as chlorhexidine, cetylpiridine, and triclosan, have been successfully used to avoid such complications. Recently, ozonated water, gels, and gaseous ozone have been reported to reduce the risk of infectious complications after oral surgery, activate the immune response, induce enzyme activity, and improve tissue healing and regeneration. Further research is necessary to validate these findings.

Keywords: antibiotic prophylaxis, oral surgery, surgical site infection, infective endocarditis, chlorhexidine, ozone therapy