Dentists: Skimping on urgent care risks fuelling antibiotic apocalypse

Dentists have warned that failing to meet demand for urgent dental care will increase pressures on the health service, as antibiotics become a substitute for treatment. The chances of a dental appointment resulting in an antibiotic prescription increased tenfold during the pandemic, and new research from the University of Manchester shows that prescribing levels have not returned to where they would have been if the pandemic hadn’t happened. The British Dental Association (BDA) stresses the best way to protect the health service from the existential threat of antibiotic resistance is to ensure patients have timely access to urgent care. Access to the right dental care at the right time to prevent and treat toothache and dental infections should be an essential part of national efforts to tackle antimicrobial resistance by reducing the unnecessary use of antibiotics.