Gender-Specific Differences of Dental Emergency Patients and the Use of Antibiotics: A 4-Year Retrospective Study

To evaluate the clinical characteristics of dental emergency patients with special regard on gender-specific differences related to the utilisation and use of antibiotics.

A retrospective analysis of all patients who presented to the emergency service of a university hospital in from 2010 to 2013 was performed. Demographic data, diagnosis, conducted treatment and the prescription of antibiotics were recorded and further analysed.

Altogether, 16,296 patients visited the emergency service. Of these patients, only one-fourth (25.7%; n = 4185) suffered from a diagnosis with urgent treatment needs. Gender-specific differences were found in the reason of visit. Males presented significantly more often with severe diagnoses, like abscess or trauma. Females presented significantly more often with non-urgent diagnoses, not directly connected to oral hygiene habits, like temporomandibular disorders (TMD), denture sore or dolor post extractionem. Moreover, an overuse of antibiotics was found among emergency patients, with every fifth patient (20.2%; n = 3291) being prescribed an antibiotic.

Better public education on dental emergencies and constant updates for dentists about the use of antibiotics in dental emergency care is necessary to secure adequate medical supply for severe dental emergencies and to avoid an inappropriate use of antibiotics.