Appropriate Analgesic Prescribing for Oral Healthcare Professionals

In 2010, enough opioids were sold to medicate each American adult at a dose of 5mg of hydrocodone every four hours for one month.  In 2011, the number of overdose deaths from painkillers more than tripled over a decade – a trend that a U.S. health official called an epidemic. By 2012 the National Center for Health Statistics reported that, “prescription painkillers have now surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of accidental death in the United States.” In 2020 we are still battling the opioid epidemic. You do not want to be part of this problem.  

Remember the Spiderman Principle that, “with great power there must also come – great responsibility.” Since pain secondary to dentistry is due to inflammation, and narcotics are not anti-inflammatory agents, opioid-containing analgesic agents should not be part of your routine armamentarium in managing postoperative dental pain. To this end, statewide electronic databases known as Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs track all controlled substance prescriptions and in many cases now require consultation by dental prescribers if an opioid containing analgesic is to be initiated on a patient.

This may be the most important continuing education program you attend. By committing just a short amount of your time to become a better prescriber, you will learn the ideal analgesic recipe to manage (almost) all of your patients pain: first time, every time. More importantly, this evidence-based, guideline-driven program will give you actionable material to begin implementing immediately. Given the renewed focus on the war on licit drugs, you do not want to become the target of any investigation into misprescribing and you certainly do not want to add to the current problem of opioid access and abuse.  Learn how to match the right drug at the right dose for the right patient now– because it is the right thing to do.

Objectives to be covered:

• Discuss the pathophysiology of pain as it relates to dentistry.
• Understand the ideal analgesic recipe to manage (almost) all of your patients pain – first time, every time.
• Explain why narcotic-containing analgesics should not be routinely prescribed for post-operative dental pain.
• Describe the mechanism of action of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications.
• Discuss the importance of consulting one’s state Prescription Drug Therapy Monitoring Program.

The speaker declares that neither he nor any member of his family has a financial arrangement or affiliation with any corporate offering financial support of grant monies for this CE program. Although commercially available products may be discussed, no financial arrangements exist between those companies and the speaker.