Antibiotic therapy in impacted third molar surgery

The use of routine antibiotic therapy in patients undergoing surgical third molar extraction is controversial. The efficacy of antibiotic therapy in p reventing postoperative complications following surgical third molar extrac tions was evaluated in 141 patients. In the test group (66 patients), the p rotocol utilized a regimen of 2 g of amoxicillin orally daily for 5 d posto peratively, starting at the completion of surgery. In the control group (75 patients), no antibiotic therapy was given. No significant difference was found between the test group and the control group in the incidence of post operative sequelae, i.e. fever, pain, swelling and alveolar osteitis. A sta tistically significant association between smoking, habitual drinking and i ncreased postoperative pain and fever was found. Patient age greater than o r equal to 18 yr was positively correlated with an increased incidence of a lveolar osteitis. Swelling was found to be gender-related, in that female p atients experienced more swelling than male patients. No correlation was fo und between the time required for surgery or difficulty of extraction and p ost-operative pain. In conclusion, no difference was found between patients receiving postoperative amoxicillin and the control group in the incidence of postoperative sequelae.