Current practices of Western Australian general dentists regarding management of patients on anticoagulant/antiplatelet therapy.

Abstract

Currently, there are little to no published studies outlining general dentists' knowledge in the management of patients on anticoagulant/antiplatelet therapies in Australia. The aim of this study was to investigate the current practices of Western Australian (WA) general dentists with regards to dental management of patients taking anticoagulants/antiplatelets. WA dentists were invited to undertake a survey to investigate their knowledge on the management of patients taking anticoagulant/antiplatelet. The questionnaire provided to WA general dentists consisted of pre-extraction advice on patients (direct oral anticoagulants [DOACs], antiplatelets, warfarin, dual antiplatelets and antiplatelet/anticoagulant). Results were analysed using descriptive statistics as well as chi-square tests. Of the 89 participants, 40.5% had <5 years of general dental experience. Most WA general dentists (64%-71%) responded with 'no change' when performing extractions on patients on DOACs, antiplatelet therapy, warfarin, dual antiplatelets and antiplatelets/anticoagulants (P = 0.00). Furthermore, dentists with 6-10 years of experience were more likely to cease antiplatelet for 24 h before extractions (P < 0.05). Dentists who extracted 10-30 teeth per month were likely to stop antiplatelets and DOACs for more than 48 h compared to other groups (P < 0.05). Most WA dentists would not cease anticoagulant/antiplatelet therapy when undergoing dental extractions.