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Pharmacologic Management of the Pediatric Patient with Special Healthcare Needs

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Dental Care for Children with Special Needs

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Abstract

Despite exhaustive efforts in accommodating children with special healthcare needs into office-based dental settings or clinics, there remains a need to provide advanced anxiety and behavioral guidance through the use of pharmacological agents. When desensitization or behavioral support fails to provide safe and adequate dental treatment conditions, strategies involving pharmaceuticals in a variety of applications may be an appropriate treatment consideration. Limitations to using such pharmacologic modalities exist at the institutional and licensure/permitting levels, so caretakers, practitioners, and allied healthcare providers must be familiar with the availability, accessibility, and relative safety of various modes of pharmacologic therapies provided by various dental professionals. Additionally, providers involved in the care of the child with special healthcare needs should be familiar and be involved in a concerted decision-making process that includes a thorough discussion of risks and benefits of proposed pharmacologic management strategies. An exhaustive decision-making process and a clear understanding of agents used in various settings will help guide treatment options and goals that account for patient needs and the proposed dental or surgical treatment.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    James W. Tom DDS, MS

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  1. James W. Tom DDS, MS
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Correspondence to James W. Tom DDS, MS .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatric Dentistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

    Travis M. Nelson

  2. Children’s Village, Yakima, WA, USA

    Jessica R. Webb

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Tom, J.W. (2019). Pharmacologic Management of the Pediatric Patient with Special Healthcare Needs. In: Nelson, T., Webb, J. (eds) Dental Care for Children with Special Needs. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10483-2_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-10483-2_10

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