News Release: Guidelines for Antibiotics Prior to Dental Treatment for Patients with Prosthetic Joints

A News Release on January 15, 2015, from the American Dental Association, clarified the guidelines regarding preventative antibiotic use prior to dental treatment for patients with prosthetic joints. In 2012, a panel of American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and American Dental Association authors co-developed guidelines entitled, “Prevention of Orthopaedic Implant Infection in Patients Undergoing Dental Procedures: Evidence-based Guideline and Evidence Report.” “The panel found that the current best evidence failed to demonstrate an association between dental procedures and prosthetic joint infection,” said Dr. Thomas Hart, Chair of the ADA Council on Scientific Affairs. Dr. Thomas Sollecito, one of the nine panel members, said, “The microorganisms involved in Prosthetic joint infection are often from different ecosystems than the oral cavity.” So in general, having a joint replaced does not mean that you have to take antibiotics prior to dental appointments.