Antimicrobial prescribing by dentists in Wales, UK: findings of the first cycle of a clinical audit

Cope, Anwen L. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3721-9455, Barnes, Emma ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6447-6647, Howells, E. P., Rockey, Ann M., Karki, Anup J., Wilson, Melanie J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8834-8268, Lewis, Michael Alexander Oxenham ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1917-0651 and Cowpe, J. G. 2016. Antimicrobial prescribing by dentists in Wales, UK: findings of the first cycle of a clinical audit. British Dental Journal 221 (1) , pp. 25-30. 10.1038/sj.bdj.2016.496

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Abstract

Objective To describe the findings of the first cycle of a clinical audit of antimicrobial use by general dental practitioners (GDPs). Setting General dental practices in Wales, UK. Subjects and methods Between April 2012 and March 2015, 279 GDPs completed the audit. Anonymous information about patients prescribed antimicrobials was recorded. Clinical information about the presentation and management of patients was compared to clinical guidelines published by the Scottish Dental Clinical Effectiveness Programme (SDCEP). Results During the data collection period, 5,782 antimicrobials were prescribed in clinical encounters with 5,460 patients. Of these 95.3% were antibiotic preparations, 2.7% were antifungal agents, and 0.6% were antivirals. Of all patients prescribed antibiotics, only 37.2% had signs of spreading infection or systemic involvement recorded, and 31.2% received no dental treatment. In total, 79.2% of antibiotic, 69.4% of antifungal, and 57.6% of antiviral preparations met audit standards for dose, frequency, and duration. GDPs identified that failure of previous local measures, patient unwillingness or inability to receive treatment, patient demand, time pressures, and patients’ medical history may influence their prescribing behaviours. Conclusions The findings of the audit indicate a need for interventions to support GDPs so that they may make sustainable improvements to their antimicrobial prescribing practices.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Cardiff Unit for Research and Evaluation in Medical and Dental Education (CUREMeDE) Dentistry Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education)
Publisher:	Nature Publishing Group
ISSN:	0007-0610
Date of Acceptance:	10 May 2016
Last Modified:	02 Nov 2022 11:24
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/101894

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