Attitudes of dental practitioners from Northern Morocco on the prescription of antibiotics during endodontic treatment: A survey

Introduction: Nowadays, antibiotics are not correctly used among some dental practitioners. Thus, the misuse of antibiotics could lead to antibiotic resistance in the long run. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prescribing attitudes of dental practitioners in Northern Morocco when treating pulpal and periapical pathologies. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study involved 220 dental practitioners registered on the board of the National Council Order of Dentists of Morocco. A self-administered questionnaire, regarding the types of antibiotics used for endodontic treatment in healthy adult patients with endodontic pathological situations, was used and filled out via the E-mail addresses of practitioners chosen randomly. The data were analyzed with Jamovi (version 1.8.1). Quantitative variables were expressed as mean and standard deviation and qualitative variables as number and percentage. The Chi-square and the ANOVA tests were performed. The significance level was P < 0.05. Results: Forty percentage of dental practitioners prescribed amoxicillin as a first-line therapy for a patient who does not have a penicillin allergy and for patients with a penicillin allergy; azithromycin was the drug of choice prescribed by 41.1% of practitioners. The duration of prescription was 6.5 days ± 0.7. No statistically significant difference was noted regarding the duration of the prescription, in relation to age, sex, specialization, and country of graduation (P > 0.05). The acute apical abscess represents the pathology for which most antibiotics are prescribed. Practitioners aged between 24 and 35 years prescribe more than the oldest practitioners (P = 0.04). Antibiotics were also prescribed for the management of pulpitis and chronic apical periodontitis. The lowest prescription rates were noted among practitioners specializing in or having benefited from endodontic training. Conclusion: It emerges from this study that very few practitioners use antibiotics appropriately in treating pulpal and periapical pathologies. A real lack of knowledge has been noted with regard to indications, dosages, and duration.