American Dental Association has New Dental Pain Management Guidelines for Pediatric Patients

The American Dental Association (ADA) has released new guidelines on dental pain management for pediatric patients. These guidelines are meant to inform clinical choice and help practitioners and parents provide the best, safest care for pediatric patients. Acetaminophen or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are suitable as first-line treatments for short-term dental pain in pediatric patients, according to a press release from the ADA.

These new guidelines provide proof for parents and practitioners when it comes to dental pain management for pediatrics, according to guideline senior author Paul Moore, DMD, PhD, MPH.

“While prescribing opioids to children has become less frequent overall, this guideline ensures that both dentists and parents have evidence-based recommendations to determine the most appropriate treatment for dental pain,” Dr Moore says in the press release. “Parents and caregivers can take comfort in the widely available medications that have no abuse potential, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, are safe and effective for helping their children find relief from short-term dental pain.”

Acetaminophen, NSAIDs, or a combination of the 2 are suitable for dental pain management in patients under 12, per the guideline that was developed by a panel of clinical authors from the American Dental Association Science & Research Institute (ADASRI), the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine, and the Center for Integrative Global Oral Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine. This comes after a 3-year $15 million grant awarded from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2020, specifically tasking these entities to find a safe and effective pain management guideline for pediatric dental patients.

As of right now, the group is working on guidelines for adolescent and adult dental patients.

“This clinical prescribing guideline is a critical step in supporting appropriate treatment of pediatric acute dental pain through the use of acetaminophen and NSAIDs,” director of the FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Patrizia Cavazzoni, MD, says in the press release. “Not only will this advice allow for better treatment of this kind of pain, but it will help prevent unnecessary prescribing of medications with abuse potential, including opioids.”