McGann Family Dental - Dentist Proudly serving the communities of Lake Elmo, Stillwater, Oakdale, Woodbury, Baytown and West Lakeland Township
Call today! (651) 777-1337
  • Home
  • About
    • Meet the Team
    • Volunteering
    • Patient Reviews
    • Blog
  • Services/Technology
    • Dental Services
    • Cosmetic Services
    • Technology
    • Smile Gallery
    • Dental Health
  • Resources
    • New Patient and Other Resources
    • After Care Instructions
    • Videos
    • Blog
    • FAQs
    • Dental Dictionary
  • Contact
    • Contact Us Form

Drugs and Your Dentist

Dr. McGann September 27, 2018 Blog

380px-Rational_scale_to_assess_the_harm_of_drugs_(mean_physical_harm_and_mean_dependence).svgMost dentists have a license with the DEA to prescribe medications related to the work they do.  The most commonly-prescribed drugs are antibiotics, but next on the list are medications to control pain, or analgesics.  Included in the list of analgesics are the common over-the-counter types such as ibuprofen (Advil) or acetaminophen (Tylenol), but sometimes these are mixed with an opioid such as hydrocodone or oxycodone to give them a little extra ‘kick’.

Any medication will have its primary, or ‘desired’, effect, but they all have secondary, or ‘side’, effects as well.  Often these side effects are minor and manageable, but the side-effect profile of opioids is different.  While helpful in controlling pain, opioids are also known for creating a euphoric feeling in the user.  While at first blush this might not seem all that bad, the euphoric effect can become addictive, and as time goes on, more and harder drugs are required to achieve it, often causing the sufferer to do anything to get it.

So if opioids are such a problem, why are we still prescribing them?  The simple answer is, for severe pain, we just don’t have anything better.  All prescribers are trained in the dangers and judicious use of opioids, but often they’re given out routinely, even when not warranted, and in excessive quantities.  In fact, numerous studies have shown that the best medication for mild to moderate pain is ibuprofen.  Yep, regular old Advil.  Opioids can help with an extra boost for severe pain, but in the vast majority of situations, Advil (or Motrin or one of the generics) is all you need.

No doubt you’ve heard about the ‘opioid crisis’ that is ravaging parts of America.  With all the other illegal drug choices out there, you may wonder why someone’s pain medication is suddenly such a problem.  Hard drugs can be expensive, hard to come by, and have a dangerous reputation, but oxycodone might be sitting right in the home medicine cabinet.  And after all, it’s just pain medication, right?

Opioids are derived from the resin of the opium poppy; in other words, they’re all chemically-modified versions of heroin.  Those facing addictions tend to move up the ladder of whatever they’re abusing: alcoholics move from beer to liquor, gamblers move from casinos to online, and opioid abusers move from Vicodin or Percocet to morphine, fentanyl, and heroin.

And when it comes to ranking dangerous drugs, heroin is king.  It has the highest addiction potential and causes more health damage than anything else out there.  Health effects include nausea, cognitive impairment, constipation, respiratory depression, coma, and brain damage.

You may be wondering “This sounds like a medical problem, why is a dentist telling me this?”  It turns out that dentists are responsible for roughly 12% of all opioid prescriptions in the US, and dentists (and oral surgeons) are the top prescriber of opioids for patients under age 19, often related to wisdom tooth extractions.  Therefore the DEA and other governmental bodies are appealing to all healthcare providers to be much more selective in their prescribing habits.

In the future, expect your providers to ask more questions and prescribe opioid pain medications in smaller quantities.  In situations where one might expect to get a prescription for Vicodin or Percocet, your provider may just recommend an over-the-counter product.  Finally, if you have any unused pain medication sitting around in your house, take it to the nearest sheriff’s office for disposal.  For more information, in Washington County visit www.co.washington.mn.us/meds.

For some, an experience with opioids can become the ultimate toxic relationship.  They start out as a friend by providing pain relief, then comes the addiction, and eventually they can ruin one’s life, or even end it.  While opioids can be helpful, they are definitely not your friend.  Just like the axiom pertaining to fire, they make a good servant but a terrible master.

Dr. McGann

Three things you didn’t know about your dentist Getting the most out of your dental insurance

Related Posts

carbs-image

Blog

Carbs: The good, the bad, and the sugary

I’m sure we’ve all spent some time checking out nutrition labels while grocery shopping, whether to make healthier food choices or to just to make a half-hearted attempt at doing so.  “Hmm, these glazed, custard-filled donuts have 200% of my recommended daily intake of fat and sugar?  Well they’re super yummy so I’m getting them.”  Regardless, […]

teeth wear

Blog

Stressed out? Don’t let your teeth bear the burden.

  Who can forget January 1st, 2021 when the entire world exclaimed in one unified voice, “Hallelujah!  2020 is over!”  OK, maybe not, but most of us were thinking it.  Agreeably 2020 was pretty awful, with the COVID pandemic, social unrest, and economic worries making all the headlines.  And while it’s good to have 2020 […]

pexels-anna-shvets-3683098

Blog

The great antibiotic debate

A noted medical researcher was recently asked what we will likely see first: a cure for cancer or a cure for bacterial infections.  While confident that cancer will eventually be defeated, he believed the battle against bacteria may never be won.  He explained that cancer cells begin when healthy cells mutate, and may even evolve […]

MFD Favicon 1
  • Home
  • About
    • Meet the Team
    • Volunteering
    • Patient Reviews
    • Blog
  • Services/Technology
    • Dental Services
    • Cosmetic Services
    • Technology
    • Smile Gallery
    • Dental Health
  • Patient Resources
    • New Patient and Other Resources
    • After-care Instructions
    • Videos
    • Blog
    • FAQs
    • Dental Dictionary
  • Contact
    • Contact Us

Recent Posts

  • Carbs: The good, the bad, and the sugary
  • Stressed out? Don’t let your teeth bear the burden.
  • The great antibiotic debate
  • Are you stressed out? Your dentist can probably tell.
  • Healthcare Evolves. Again.

Blog Categories

  • Blog
  • Dental Fears
  • Technology
© McGann Family Dental 2023