The Perception of Dental Patients regarding Antibiotics

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the level of knowledge and attitude towards antibiotic usage among dental patients.

Study Design: Cross Sectional study

Place and Duration of Study: Various Institutes of Karachi, Pakistan.  March’2021 to August’2021.

Material and methods: A well-structured and validated questionnaire, filled by 304 dental patients was included in the study. The data was analyzed through SPSS 25.

Results: Out of the total 304 participants included, 182 (59.9%) participants belonged to the age bracket of 21-30 years. Majority of the 208 (68.4%) participants believed that antibiotics are necessary after undergoing tooth extraction. About 186 (61.2%) of the patients themselves asked the dental surgeon for prescribing antibiotics when they were not prescribed to take them. When the participants were asked about their reason for getting an antibiotic prescription, most of the 166 (54.6%) respondents stated that to prevent the development of infection. Moreover, about half of the participants accepted self-medicating them with an antibiotic. About 116 (38.2%) participants self medicated them with Augmentin, and 16 (5.3%) participants taking Amoxil. Lastly, regarding antibiotic resistance, majority of the 194 (63.8%) respondents knows about the antibiotic resistance, while 110 (36.2%) respondents have no idea about it.

Conclusion: The present study provided evidence that variable levels of understanding of antibiotics use is found among the general public reporting to the dental practitioners. This lack of education results in self medication which is contributing towards antibiotic resistance. Therefore, there is a strong need to change the attitude of general public towards self medication through awareness campaigns.