Maintenance of good oral health is more important than use of antibiotics in dental procedures for some heart patients to prevent a heart infection caused by bacteria around the teeth, according to a new American Heart Association (AHA) scientific statement published today in the Association’s flagship journal, Circulation.
Infective endocarditis (IE), also called bacterial endocarditis, is a heart infection caused by bacteria that enter the bloodstream and settle in the heart lining, a heart valve or a blood vessel. Viridans group streptococcal infective endocarditis (VGS IE) is caused by bacteria that collect in plaque on the tooth surface and cause inflammation and swelling of the gums. There’s been concern that certain dental procedures may increase the risk of developing VGS IE in vulnerable patients.
The new guidance affirms previous recommendations that only four categories of heart patients should be prescribed antibiotics prior to certain dental procedures to prevent VGS IE due to their higher risk for complications from the infection:
- those with prosthetic heart valves or prosthetic material used for valve repair;
- those who have had a previous case of infective endocarditis;
- adults and children with congenital heart disease; or,
- people who have undergone a heart transplant.
It has been over a decade since recommendations for preventing IE were updated amid concerns of antibiotic resistance due to overprescribing. The AHA’s 2007 guidelines more tightly defined which patients should receive preventive antibiotics before certain dental procedures to the four high-risk categories. This change resulted in about 90% fewer patients requiring antibiotics.
From: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/04/210415090730.htm
