Medical Emergencies · patient case question
Regarding dental treatment during pregnancy, which statement is correct?
Patient case: Pregnant adolescent attending with her parents
Patient: Female, 14 years old
Chief complaint: Attends for a dental cleaning.
Background: She is pregnant. She is accompanied by her parents, who do not know.
Current findings: She discloses the pregnancy privately and asks that her parents not be told.
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: B. Necessary dental treatment should be provided, with the second trimester generally most comfortable
- A. Deferring necessary treatment, particularly of infection, actively harms both patient and pregnancy.
- B. CORRECT. Necessary care should not be withheld. Untreated infection poses a far greater risk to mother and fetus than treatment does. Elective care is often scheduled in the second trimester, when organogenesis is complete and the patient can lie comfortably; in the third trimester, avoid the supine position to prevent supine hypotensive syndrome.
- C. Radiographs may be taken when diagnostically necessary, with a lead apron and thyroid collar. Fetal dose from dental radiography is negligible.
- D. Lidocaine with epinephrine is category B and is safe in the doses used in dentistry. Good anaesthesia reduces maternal stress.
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