One in 10 older dental patients were prescribed opioids when they were already taking a medication associated with increased harm risks when taken in combination with opioids, according to a study published in Pharmacotherapy.
Researchers from the University of Illinois Chicago and the University of Pittsburgh examined medical, dental and pharmacy claims data from the IBM Watson MarketScan databases, analyzing the claims of 40,800 older dental patients who saw a dentist and were prescribed opioids between 2011 and 2015.
There were 947 hospitalizations or emergency room visits among the 10 percent of patients who were inappropriately prescribed an opioid medication combination by their dentist. The study found patients who were inappropriately prescribed opioids were 23 percent more likely to be hospitalized or visit an emergency department in the 30 days after their dental visit than those who were not prescribed opioids.
"Dentists are among the top prescribers of opioids," Katie Suda, PharmD, one of the study's principal investigators, said in a Sept. 16 news release. "It seems that the increased messaging regarding limiting opioid prescriptions has been aimed primarily at medical physicians and not tailored to other specialist providers, including dentists. This can have dire consequences."
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