CONTINUING EDUCATION IN HONOR OF NORMAN TRIEGER, DMD, MD Adverse Drug Reactions in Dental Practice

Adverse reactions may occur with any of the medications prescribed or administered in dental practice. Most of these reactions are somewhat predictable based on the pharmacodynamic properties of the drug. Others, such as allergic and pseudoallergic reactions, are less common and unrelated to normal drug action. This article will review the most common adverse reactions that are unrelated to drug allergy. Key Words: Adverse drug reactions; Drug side effects; Dentistry. Adverse drug reactions occur in 10–20 % of hospital-ized patients and in approximately 7 % of those in the ambulatory setting.1 By convention, adverse drug reactions are categorized as type A or type B. Type B reactions were addressed in a previous continuing education article in this journal and consist mostly of idiosyncrasy or drug allergy.2 Type A reactions are the focus of this article. They are more common and are generally attributable to known pharmacological or toxic effects of the drug. The typical pharmacopeia in dental practice is relatively small, consisting primarily of sedatives, local anesthetics, analgesics, and antibiotics. The most common adverse effects will be addressed for each of these classes