Evaluation of medical consultations in a predoctoral dental clinic.
OBJECTIVE
A patient's medical condition can affect the delivery of dental care. Medical consultation is indicated for dental patients whose medical history is uncertain or when physical assessment may indicate an untreated medical problem. The aims of this study were to evaluate the use of medical consultation and determine how it affects dental treatment plans in a predoctoral dental clinic program.


METHODS
Reviews of 147 medical consultation requests were performed.


RESULTS
The main reasons for medical consultations were cardiovascular assessment (51.5%) and diabetic status determination (12.6%). In the cardiovascular assessment category, hypertension (48.1%) and heart murmur (17.9%) were primary concerns. Main dental concerns were the need for preoperative antibiotic prophylaxis (33.3%) and the use of vasoconstrictors (20.4%). Overall, 32.1% of medical consultations resulted in an alteration in dental treatment plans. As a result of medical consultations, 8% commenced their medical management.


CONCLUSIONS
These results indicated that medical consultations could reduce the medical risk associated with dental procedures and unnecessary antibiotic prophylaxis. Therefore for many dental patients, good communication between dentists and physicians is essential for adequate care.
Jainkittivong
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A
Department of Dental Diagnostic Science, School of Dentistry, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, USA.
Yeh
C K
CK
Guest
G F
GF
Cottone
J A
JA
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019072:Antibiotic Prophylaxis; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases; D017742:Dental Care for Chronically Ill / Q000379:methods*; D003740:Dental Clinics; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking; D008875:Middle Aged; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D012017:Referral and Consultation