Clinical Significance
Oral contraceptives should be among the drugs listed by female
InquiryOral contraceptives and alveolar osteitis
Section snippets
Background
Alveolar osteitis (AO) is a common complication associated with tooth extraction, especially when impacted mandibular third molars are extracted. In AO the blood clot in the extraction site is disrupted or removed, leaving the bone unprotected and exposed so that bacteria can contaminate the site. This disruption can be caused by a number of influences, including those related to the surgery. In addition, there are a number of risk factors for AO. One is the use of oral contraceptives. The
Methods
A retrospective study format was used. The clinical records of patients who had impacted mandibular third molars extracted were reviewed, noting the patients’ sex, age, occurrence of AO, and whether any of the female patients were taking oral contraceptives at the time of the surgery. Patients were considered positive for AO if one or both sockets developed AO.
Results
AO occurred with a total incidence of 13.8% for the complete sample of patients having mandibular third molar extraction. The incidence of AO in women was 13.0% and that among men was 14.8%. AO occurred in 37.9% of the women taking oral contraceptives, but just 8.9% of those not taking oral contraceptives at the time of the extraction (Fig 1). The difference in AO incidence between women taking contraceptives and those not taking them was statistically significant, as was the difference in AO
Discussion
AO among women who took oral contraceptives occurred at a significantly higher frequency than among those who did not take these agents or among men. Although most studies of AO and oral contraceptive use find a link, further study is needed to specify the days of the female menstrual cycle that have the highest and lowest rates and if the incidence of AO varies with the different oral contraceptive formulations.
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Almeida LE, Pierce S, Klar K, et al: Effects of oral contraceptives on the prevalence of alveolar osteitis after mandibular third molar surgery: A retrospective study. Int J Oral Maxillofac Surg 45:1299-1302, 2016
Reprints available from LE Almeida, School of Dentistry, Marquette Univ, PO Box 1881, Milwaukee, WI 53201; e-mail: [email protected]