The German Heart Foundation stressed the need for a heart patient to inform the dentist that he had previously suffered from heart disease or a stroke, since these serious medical conditions affect the choice of the appropriate treatment method.
The Foundation explained that many dental anesthesia medications contain “adrenaline” and thus stimulate the heart. This may cause a problem for people who suffer from heart rhythm disorders. In this case, a different anesthetic must be used.
Effect of medications
Medications may also have a direct and indirect effect on dental treatment, as blood thinning medications increase the possibility of bleeding. This may be important even during dental cleaning in the clinic, in addition to the fact that some medications have side effects such as dry mouth.
Most patients do not need antibiotics, even for complex treatments and major dental procedures.
However, antibiotics can be helpful for people who have had heart valve replacement surgery or endocarditis (inflammation of the inner lining of the heart) to prevent the infection from getting worse.