title: Alveolar Osteitis: Patients' compliance to post-extraction instructions following extraction of molar teeth.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To evaluate the effect of various combination of post-extraction regimen administered to patients who had intra-alveolar molar tooth extraction.
  
  
  METHODS
  One year prospective study involving 76 consenting patients who came for 1-week post-extraction review. The patients were placed on warm saline mouth rinse with (verbal instruction) or without antibiotic and or analgesic therapy (written prescription), after intra-alveolar molar tooth extraction. Information was obtained from the patients through questionnaire and clinical examination.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The patients were placed on warm saline mouth rinse (n = 29, 38.2%) only, warm saline rinse, antibiotics (Amoxicillin and metronidazole) and Paracetamol (n = 31, 40.8%), Paracetamol and warm saline rinse (n = 12, 15.8%) and antibiotics (Amoxicillin and metronidazole) and Paracetamol (n = 4, 5.3%). A total of 63 (82.9%) patients complied with the post-extraction regimen, giving a significant high compliance to the post-extraction instructions (P = 0.001). There were 10 (13.2%) cases of post-extraction localised alveolar osteitis, with predilection for the lower molar teeth (n = 6, 7.9%) and a significant predilection for females (n = 8, 10.5%) [P = 0.005]. Overall, there were five (6.6%) cases each of localised alveolar osteitis in the compliant patients (n = 63, 82.9%) and non-compliant patients (n = 13, 17.1%), giving a ratio of 1:13 and 1:3, respectively. There was significant association of compliance with post-extraction instruction and the reduced incidence of localized alveolar osteitis (P = 0.015).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed a significant patients' compliance with post-extraction warm saline rinse, prophylactic antibiotics and analgesic and a corresponding significant reduction in the incidence of localised alveolar osteitis following intra-alveolar molar tooth extraction. This study emphasises the need to properly educate patients on the effect of compliance to various combination of post-extraction regimen.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Osagie
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Akpata
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Pathology and Oral Medicine, University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Osawe Felix
authors.initials: OF
authors.lastname: Omoregie
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Oral Pathology, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Foluso
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Owotade
keywords: Alveolar osteitis; molar tooth extraction; post-extraction regimen