The Efficacy of Long-Term Post-Operative Antibiotic Therapy Versus Placebo on Dental Implants

Background: Because of the cost and adverse effect of antibiotics, necessity of its prescription in simple implant surgery is questionable. Objectives: The current study aimed to evaluate the effect of post-operative antibiotic therapy on reduction of post-operative morbidity and failure of dental implants. Patients and Methods: This triple blind randomized controlled clinical trial included 46 patients (23 in the control and 23 in the intervention groups). Patients in each group were given amoxicillin, 500 mg or placebo every 8 hours for seven days, post operatively. Early infection (occurring in seven days after the surgery) and late infection (occurring in one, three and six months after the surgery) were assessed in all patients. Results: Sixteen patients (66.7%) in antibiotic group and 20 patients (90.9%) in placebo group had post-operative swelling and pain. The average pain in the antibiotic and placebo groups were (31.04 + 26.29) and (37.73 + 23.69) respectively, and the difference was not statistically significant (P value = 0.37). One patient in each group had probing depth between 5 to 7 mm in six months after surgery (P value = 1). There was no significant statistical difference between the two groups in Implant failure. It occurred in two patients in the placebo group (P value = 0.22). Conclusions: The current study results showed that administration of prolong prophylactic/postoperative antibiotics in simple dental implant surgery might not be beneficial.