توضیحات

Pharmacology, the science of drugs (medicines), is a highly dynamic discipline with concepts and priority drugs changing rapidly. Its relevance to all health professionals (including dentists) cannot be over emphasized. Practice of dentistry utilizes drugs both as primary treatment modality, as well as facilitator of/adjuvant to dental procedures. Dentists routinely prescribe analgesics and antibiotics, apply antiseptics and other locally acting drugs, and inject local anaesthetics. Further, many dental patients could be receiving other medication that may have orodental implications, or may interact with drugs prescribed by the dentist.

Occasionally, dentists have to manage a medical emergency which may arise during a dental procedure or in their clinic. As such, a broad knowledge of pharmacology along with focus on particular aspects is needed by the dentist. Essentials of Pharmacology for Dentistry book has been produced to specifically meet the above outlined needs. Essentials of Pharmacology for Dentistry book is divided into three sections. The first describes the general pharmacological principles with which all professionals involved in drug therapy must be conversant.

The second on systemic pharmacology presents a brief account of drugs acting on various organ systems and used in the treatment of common disorders affecting these systems, but are generally not prescribed by dentists. Each chapter is organised systematically. The opening sentence defines the class of drugs, followed by their classification presented in hierarchical chart form for better pictorial impression and easy remembrance.

The ‘prototype’ approach has been adopted by describing the representative drug of the class followed by few salient features of the others. Matters particularly relevant to dental therapeutics have been highlighted. Wherever applicable, the implications in dentistry are prominently elaborated, e.g. drugs and diseases affecting postextraction haemostasis, dental procedures in patients on corticosteroid therapy or in diabetics, orodental complications of cancer chemotherapy and chronic alcoholism, etc.

The third section of Essentials of Pharmacology for Dentistry covers antimicrobials and other drugs which the dentists usually prescribe or administer themselves.