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Drug related oro‐facial disease

• Published in: Oral diseases Vol. 12; no. s1; p. 3
• Main Authors: Alajbeg, I, Hodgson, TA
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-09-2006
• ISSN: 1354-523X; 1601-0825
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1601-0825.2006.01306_13.x

Drugs may be defined as substances used in the diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of a disease or as a component of a medication or alternatively as chemical substances, such as a narcotic or hallucinogen, affecting the central nervous system, causing changes in behavior and often addiction. Orofacial drug‐related adverse reactions may present initially to the dental surgeon or doctor and require specialist opinion. Due to the complexity of clinical presentation including symptoms (pain, dysgeusia, xerostomia and dysaesthesia) and signs (mucosal and bone pathology) diagnostic problems are common and a detailed prescribed and non‐prescribed medication history invalid. New therapeutic interventions are continually introduced across Europe and health care practitioners should be vigilant for unreported oro‐facial adverse reactions and be able to access the local reporting mechanism. The benefits of the drug prescribed weighed against the risk from the oro‐facial adverse reaction will determine if drug cessation is appropriate. This paper aims to update practitioners on the spectrum of drug‐related oro‐facial disease, review factors to be elicited from the drug history, focus on newly introduced drugs and their, in some cases devastating, oro‐facial adverse effects and discuss management options.