Tag Archives: antibiotic prophylaxis

Introduction Infective endocarditis (IE) is a devastating syndrome with a high in-hospital and one-year mortality.1,2 Frequently, valve replacement is required, and inpatient stays are prolonged. Moreover, the incidence of IE is increasing in the UK and across Europe.3,4 There is likely no one cause for this increase, and it probably represents the convergence of multiple factors. These include an ageing population, increasing rates of diabetes mellitus, rising rates of medical intervention, and, possibly, a reduction in the provision of antibiotic prophylaxis in the setting of invasive procedures. Links between dentistry and the development

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NICE guidance The NICE review tried to determine which cardiac conditions are associated with increased risk of IE; whether dental treatment is associated with acute risk of developing the condition and whether ABP was effective in prevention of cases and deaths. The NICE guideline concluded that patients with structural heart disease were at increased risk of IE but did not find convincing evidence that dental ABP was cost-effective. They calculated that if amoxicillin prophylaxis was effective then the cost of preventing a single case of IE would be circa £12 million. In the absence of high-quality evidence for clinical effectiveness the