Antidepressants relevant to oral and maxillofacial surgical practice

BACKGROUND: Depression is commonly associated with a high-carbohydrate diet, lack of interest in proper oral hygiene and xerostomia connected to the use of antidepressants. Patients often consult their dentists as a result of changes affecting the hard dental substance and the soft-tissues. AIM: The aim of this study was to identify adverse drug interactions between the antidepressants and medications commonly administered in dentistry in order to give practicing dentists an overview of the scientific literature. OBJECTIVE: The objective is to identify the adverse drug interactions between antidepressants and medication commonly administered in dentistry. STUDY DESIGN: The literature search was performed using PubMed, Cochrane and the specific search items. The review (1984-2009) focused on medicines used in dental practice (vasoconstrictors, non-opioid analgesics, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, antifungals and benzodiazepines). RESULTS: There are various drug interactions between antidepressants and medicines used in dentistry. When two or more drugs are co-administered, a drug interaction must always be anticipated though many of the interactions are potential problems, but do not seem to be real clinical issues. CONCLUSION: The probability of a drug interaction can be minimized by careful history-taking, skillful dose adjustment and safe administration of the therapeutic agent.