Analgesic and Anti-Inflammatory Prescription Pattern in the Dental Clinic of the Bingham University Teaching Hospital, Jos, Nigeria
Abstract
This retrospective cross-sectional study evaluated the prescription patterns of analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs at the Dental Clinic of Bingham University Teaching Hospital (BhUTH), Jos, Nigeria, from January 2022 to July 2024. The review covered a total of 179 patient records, focusing on case classification (surgical vs. non-surgical), demographics, and prescribed medications. Non-surgical cases predominated (86.6%), with a nearly equal gender distribution, although males were more likely to undergo surgical procedures. Out of 183 prescriptions analysed, paracetamol accounted for 71.6%, followed by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as diclofenac (25.1%), and combination NSAID-prostaglandin formulations, including Arthrotec (3.3%). The strong preference for paracetamol reflects its perceived safety profile and effectiveness in managing mild to moderate dental pain. These findings reflect a conservative, evidence-based approach to dental pharmacotherapy, emphasising nonopioid analgesics for routine dental care at the Dental Clinic in BhUTH, Jos, Nigeria. Experts recommend providing regular updates on drugs used in pain management, as prescribers tend to focus on NSAIDs at the expense of other options.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
1. Scott, N. L., & Miner, J. R. (2016). The safe and rational use of analgesics: Nonopioid analgesics. Current Emergency and Hospital Medicine Reports, 4(2), 66–70. doi: 10.1007/s40138-016-0102-5
2. Compton, W. M., Jones, C. M., & Baldwin, G. T. (2016). Relationship between Nonmedical Prescription-Opioid Use and Heroin Use. New England Journal of Medicine, 374(2), 154–163. doi: 10.1056/nejmra1508490
3. Krasniqi, S., & Daci, A. (2017). Analgesics use in dentistry. In InTech eBooks. doi: 10.5772/66600
4. Marra, F., George, D., Chong, M., Sutherland, S., & Patrick, D. M. (2016). Antibiotic prescribing by dentists has increased. The Journal of the American Dental Association, 147(5), 320–327. doi: 10.1016/j.adaj.2015.12.014
5. Jeske, A. H. (2024). Contemporary Dental Pharmacology. In Springer eBooks. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-53954-1
6. Hargreaves, K., & Abbott, P. V. (2005). Drugs for pain management in dentistry. Australian Dental Journal, 50(s2). doi: 10.1111/j.1834-7819.2005.tb00378.x
7. Datta, P., & Datta, P. P. (2015). Drug Utilisation Pattern In Oral Medicine Department Of Saveetha Dental College, Tamil Nadu, India. National Journal of Medical Research, 5(04), 272–274.
8. Krasniqi, S., Haliti, N., Haliti, F., Koçani, F., Gashi, A., Mrasori, S., Hyseni, V., Bytyqi, S., Krasniqi, L., & Murtezani, A. (2015). Surveillance of antibiotic and analgesic use in the Oral Surgery Department of the University Dentistry Clinical Center of Kosovo. Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management, 1497. doi: 10.2147/tcrm.s87595
9. Mohan, M. (2011). Pharmacological Agents in Dentistry: a review. British Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, 1(3), 66–87. doi: 10.9734/bjpr/2011/272
10. Shim, Y., Kim, A., Jeon, E., & An, S. (2015). Dental fear & anxiety and dental pain in children and adolescents; a systemic review. Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, 15(2), 53. doi: 10.17245/jdapm.2015.15.2.53
11. Yu, J., Nie, E., Jiang, R., Zhang, C., & Li, X. (2020). Analgesic and Antibiotic Prescription Pattern among Dentists in Guangzhou: A Cross-Sectional Study. Pain Research and Management, 1–6. doi: 10.1155/2020/6636575
12. Martínez, S. R., Serna, J. T., & Silvestre, F. (2015). Manejo odontológico en el paciente cirrótico. Gastroenterología Y Hepatología, 39(3), 224–232. doi: 10.1016/j.gastrohep.2015.07.005
13. Becker, D. E. (2010). Pain Management: Part 1: Managing acute and postoperative dental pain. Anesthesia Progress, 57(2), 67–79. doi: 10.2344/0003-3006-57.2.67
14. Rasubala, L., Pernapati, L., Velasquez, X., Burk, J., & Ren, Y. (2015). Impact of a mandatory prescription drug monitoring program on prescription of opioid analgesics by dentists. PLoS ONE, 10(8), e0135957. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0135957
15. Levy, B., Paulozzi, L., Mack, K. A., & Jones, C. M. (2015). Trends in Opioid Analgesic–Prescribing Rates by Specialty, US, 2007–2012. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 49(3), 409–413. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2015.02.020
16. Baker, J. A., Avorn, J., Levin, R., & Bateman, B. T. (2016). Opioid prescribing after surgical extraction of teeth in Medicaid patients, 2000-2010. JAMA, 315(15), 1653. doi: 10.1001/jama.2015.19058
17. Cooney, N., Pollack, C., & Butkerait, P. (2015). Adverse drug reactions and drug– drug interactions with over-the-counter NSAIDs. Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management, 1061. doi: 10.2147/tcrm.s79135
18. Crighton, A. J., McCann, C. T., Todd, E. J., & Brown, A. J. (2020). Safe use of paracetamol and high-dose NSAID analgesia in dentistry during the COVID-19 pandemic. BDJ, 229(1), 15–18. doi: 10.1038/s41415-020-1784-3
19. James, N. B., Lohnan, N. C. L., Joshua, N. Z. N., Edugbe, N. a. E., Onyeji, N. J., Samaila, N. M., Anzaku, N. S. A., & Yohanna, N. S. (2025). A pattern of contraceptive implant uptake and its prevalence among women attending Family Planning Clinic at the Bingham University Teaching Hospital, Jos. GSC Advanced Research and Reviews, 23(1), 091–096. doi: 10.30574/gscarr.2025.23.1.0113
20. Oka, T., Oka, K., & Saper, C. B. (2003). Contrasting effects of E type prostaglandin (EP) receptor agonists on core body temperature in rats. Brain Research, 968(2), 256–262. doi: 10.1016/s0006-8993(03)02268-6
21. Ayoub, S. S. (2021). Paracetamol (acetaminophen): A familiar drug with an unexplained mechanism of action. Temperature, 8(4), 351–371. doi: 10.1080/23328940.2021.1886392
22. Gerriets, V., Anderson, J., Patel, P., & Nappe, T. M. (2024). Acetaminophen. In StatPearls.
23. Roda, R. P., Bagán, J. V., Soriano, Y. J., & Romero, L. G. (2007). Use of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs in Dental Practice. A Review. Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal, 12(1).
24. Ong, C. K. S., Seymour, R. A., Lirk, P., & Merry, A. F. (2010). Combining Paracetamol (Acetaminophen) with Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs. Anesthesia & Analgesia, 110(4), 1170–1179. doi: 10.1213/ane.0b013e3181cf9281
Article Metrics
Metrics powered by PLOS ALM
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
Copyright (c) 2025 Toluwanimi Alexis Ogundeko, Timothy Olugbenga Ogundeko, Bamidele Victor Babatunde, Ayuba Clagba Sanni, Olusayo Moritiwon, Mamzhi Seljul C. Ramyil, Paul Amos Bassi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Email the author