NICE Confirms New Guidelines for Heart Patients Undergoing Dental Treatment
Representatives from NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) have confirmed a change of guidelines for dentists treating patients with heart problems.
In 2008, NICE recommended that dentists no longer prescribe antibiotics for patients who had underlying heart issues. However, recently the guidelines were changed again, as NICE implemented advice for dentists to administer antibiotics for those with high-risk heart conditions.
The move comes after pressure from researchers at the University of Sheffield and the charity Heart Research UK. Experts believed that the advice was unsafe, as research suggested an increase in the number of patients developing infective endocarditis. This is a life-threatening illness.
Research into the impact of the change of guidelines was carried out by a team at the University of Sheffield in partnership with Simplyhealth. The team, which was led by Professor Martin Thornhill, found that there had been a spike in cases of infective endocarditis since the guidelines were changed in 2008. Now, NICE has changed the guidelines to enable dentists to prescribe antibiotics to patients at a high risk of infective endocarditis. Although it advises against routine administration, it gives professionals the ability to offer the drug if they think it is in the patient’s best interests.
Professor Martin Thornhill has welcomed the news, along with Barbara Harpham, director of Heart Research UK. The move also represents a massive step forward for Ash Frisby, who lost her husband Myles to infective endocarditis following a trip to the dental hygienist. Myles had an artificial heart valve and died two months after the appointment. Mrs Frisby described the events as “truly shocking” and expressed her relief at the announcement of revised guidelines.
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