The challenge faced by all clinicians today is to provide safe and effective dental treatment to our medically complex patients. However, dental professionals find themselves practicing in a marketplace awash in direct to consumer advertising of prescription drugs and in the midst of an explosion of new drug entities over the last several years. Thus, many dental professionals may find it challenging to stay up to date with the latest prescribing trends in disease state management. This program will provide an overview of those frequently prescribed brand name medications whose actions, side effects, contraindications and potential drug interactions may have the greatest impact on dental therapy.

Upon successful completion of this program, participants will be able to:

• Identify the most frequently prescribed FDA-approved brand name medications for the treatment of systemic illnesses.
• Discuss the basic mechanisms of action, potential adverse reactions, drug interactions and contraindications of these medications.
• Explain the clinical dental considerations of these medications and their potential impact on dental therapy.
• Describe patient management strategies essential for successful treatment planning and proper care of our medically complex dental patients.