Antibiotic abuse during endodontic treatment: A contributing factor to antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic resistance is one of our most serious global health threats. The adverse effects of overusing and misusing antibiotics are highly publicized in the health professional literature. Antibiotic abuse occurs during routine endodontic treatment and there are deficiencies in knowledge regarding prescribing antibiotic and appropriate prophylactic antibiotic use. Multidisciplinary coordination and cooperation among dentists, pharmacists, and patients is needed to curb antibiotic abuse. As endodontists, we can become part of the solution to the antibiotic resistance crisis and deal with it conclusively. This review article discusses antibiotic resistance resulting from antibiotic abuse during endodontic treatment, various factors contributing to it, and measures required for stopping antibiotic abuse in endodontic treatment. A web-based research on MedLine was performed with terms Review Articles published in the last 10 year's dental journals in English for literature researching, extracting, and synthesizing data. Relevant articles were shortlisted. Important cross-reference articles were also reviewed.