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03 Dental Tribune Asia Pacific Edition | 12/2016 ASIA PACIFIC NEWS “Antibiotic resistance is a serious health issue” By Brendan Day, DTI The use of antibiotics is essential in modern medical treatments, yet frequent misuse has reduced their effectiveness. This year’s World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW), held from 14 to 20 No- vember, sought to increase pub- lic understanding of the issue. Dental Tribune spoke with Dr Paul Sambrook, Chairman of the Den- tal Therapeutics Committee of the Australian Dental Association (ADA), about WAAW’s purpose and what dental professionals can do to combat antimicrobial resist- ance. Dental Tribune: What is the primary goal of WAAW? Dr Paul Sambrook: The aim of the WAAW is to increase aware- ness of global antibiotic resist- ance and to encourage best prac- tices among the general public, prescribers and policymakers to avoid the further emergence and spread of antibiotic resist- ance. How widespread of a problem is misuse or overuse of antibiotics in Australia? Dentists prescribe less than 3 per cent of all antibiotics pre- scribed in Australia. However, in- formation from NPS Medicine- Wise states that Australia has one of the highest prescription rates globally, with around 29 million prescriptions issued each year— more than one per person on average. Antibiotic resistance is a se- rious health issue already pres- ent in our community. Without antibiotics, infections that were once easily treated may once again kill. If we do not address anti- biotic resistance, by 2050 up to ten million people may die every year from untreatable in- fections. How did the ADA encourage in- volvement during WAAW? The continuing theme of “Antibiotics: Handle with care” for this year’s WAAW is highly rel- evant for dentistry. People with dental problems sometimes think that popping a painkiller or see- ing their doctor for antibiotics is the best response rather than having a proper examination by their dentist. The ADA has been doing its part to address the problem of antibiotic resistance by advis- ing members through infor- mational articles in its regular publications and website. ADA members have access to a highly experienced clinical pharmacist, Dr Geraldine Moses, from whom they can seek expert advice on prescribing. We also provide members with a copy of the den- tal and oral therapeutic guide- lines, which provide reliable and independent therapeutic infor- mation to assist in making the best decisions for patients in a dental setting. How can dental professionals help minimise the risk of increasing antimicrobial resistance? The first response to dental problems must always be accu- rate assessment by a dentist who can deal with the cause, not just the symptoms. That is our mes- sage to patients. We urge dental professionals to use the opportunity to educate their patients about how to ad- dress dental problems they have pre-andpost-treatmentandwhere antibiotics do or do not fit in their particular case. To ensure that dental pro- fessionals are prescribing anti- biotics in line with best practice, ADA members can use servic- es such as PharmaAdvice and the afore-mentioned therapeutic guidelines. Thank you very much for the inter- view. NOW AS A FLOW! Tetric ® N-Ceram Bulk Fill The efficient posterior composite P ATENTED L IGHT INITI A T O R Ivocerin ® Tetric® N-Flow Bulk Fill flowable Tetric® N-Ceram Bulk Fill sculptable * Compared with Tetric ® N-Flow and Tetric ® N-Ceram Data available on request. www.ivoclarvivadent.com Ivoclar Vivadent AG Bendererstr. 2 | 9494 Schaan | Liechtenstein | Tel.: +423 235 35 35 | Fax: +423 235 33 60 on time* and achieve amazing results 55% Save AD Bendererstr. 2 | 9494 Schaan | Liechtenstein | Tel.: +4232353535 | Fax: +4232353360