Trends in the use of antimicrobial agents in dental practice survey among 29 dental colleges and university hospitals in Japan

Abstract

In an effort to survey antimicrobial agents actually used in dental practice, a multiinstitutional study was made of the consumption and share of antimicrobial agents as classified by chemical structure and dosage form. The study involved 29 dental colleges or university hospitals in Japan, and consisted of two parts: one, investigation of the share of antimicrobial agents used in a 10-day period from 28th September through 9th November, 1992, and the other, categorization of antimicrobial agents used over a 6-month period from April through September 1992.
Antimicrobial agents accounted for 22% of all oral medicines, and ranked second just behind antiinflammatory and analgesic drugs which accounted for 27%. The order of share in descending frequency was: cephem series including Cefaclor and Cephalexin ; penicillin series such as Lenampicillin, Amoxycillin, and Bacampicillin. Injectable antimicrobial agents were used in as many as 62% of patients who were given injectable forms. The breakdown is as follows: cephem series, 50%; penicillin series, 27%; and others comprised of fosfomycin, aminoglycosides and tetracycline series, only 14%.
Cephem and penicillin preparations were found to constitute the most commonly uded antimicrobial agents in dental practice, with this trend shared by all dental colleges and university hospitals in Japan.