For many people, medications are a big part of one’s overall
health. When they see the dentist, often they don’ really think that
medications can affect their oral health, but it does create a few concerns,
along with some issues. It’s important to note these when you see your dentist
in Santa Clarita, for it can make a difference in your oral health along with
your overall physical health as well. Sometimes, a dentist will ask if you’re
taking medications, and the answer does help them in some ways. Do you know why
though? Well, you’re about to find out.
The first thing to know is that if your dentist asks this,
you should tell them about any medication you’re taking, along with any health
conditions that are being treated. This is super important, since it will give
the dentist a medical history of the patient, and any conditions that might be
there.
What some don’t realize, is that the medications that one
does take has side effects that affect the mouth. Sometimes, mouths become
swollen, along with dry mouth, can be a big part of some medications. If your
dentist knows about this, they can help with the side effects and help to
manage them.
Sometimes, if you take a medication, it might combine poorly
with some treatments the dentist might recommend. It can even put your own
personal health in jeopardy as well, which is a bit scary to think about. If
you think a medication can affect a treatment, then you should make sure that
your dentist knows about this so that they can treat it accordingly. You owe it
to yourself to be honest about this.
Typically, the biggest problem with this is dry mouth. Dry
mouth is essentially when your oral cavity isn’t producing saliva. This is
actually a big problem, since this can cause cavities to develop much more
easily, and not only that, it’s painful and quite hard to manage in some cases.
Most of the medications that you take cause this to some degree. Plus, if you
take more than one of these that cause it, you’ll further dry out the mouth,
which isn’t very fun. If you’re taking medications for high blood pressure,
depression, anxiety, and chronic pain, you should let your doctor know, as
these can be the biggest causes of dry mouth in a patient, so you should act
accordingly.
You should make sure that you let the dentist know about
this. Don’t be afraid to give them the full story of your oral health. You
should be really honest about this. For some people, they might think that just
because a condition or disease isn’t related to your oral health, it isn’t
important to note. However, this is a false statement, and a dangerous way of
thinking. For example, diabetes affects many people, and while it is typically
uncontrolled blood sugar, it’s got effects that happen in the mouth as well,
since many who have this tend to suffer from gum disease, along with various
oral infections. Not only that, sometimes if you’re taking a medication along
with this condition, it can cause bad effects in the body, and not only that,
even those that do take care of their teeth and gums who have diabetes often do
have less complications to being a diabetic, so in a sense, it does help you to
tell your dentist about this, and to take care of yourself. You should make
sure that you let your dentist know about your medical history, for it can help
you.
Finally, if you’re taking various antibiotics, it can
negatively affect anesthesia. Some people are allergic to it, and combined with
some medications, it could put your life at risk. You should let your doctor
know if you’re allergic to anything, or if you need to take something else for
a condition. If you’re smart about it, and if you take precautions and let your
dentist know of the issues, it will potentially save your
life. You should always be honest with your dentist about these conditions, but
it’s especially impotent if you’re taking a medication to prevent this.
